


A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

by Mhor



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Character Development, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, OC character plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-27
Updated: 2019-06-27
Packaged: 2020-05-18 21:36:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19343116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mhor/pseuds/Mhor
Summary: Shiganshina woke her up and left her without any memories. Any life she had before was gone. As much as she wanted to know where she was from and who she was before, she had a debt to pay.In Shiganshina she tore apart lives, families, and homes as a mindless destructive beast with overwhelming force. The path to atonement was symbolized by the Wings of Freedom, green cloak, and comrades at her side. Comrades she feared to grow close to; people she knew she had harmed.She wanted to fight for their cause, defend them, and find her past. Good or bad, she had to know.Along the way she meets survivors of Shiganshina and Wall Maria. They talk about their survival, about returning to Shiganshina and reclaim the lands they lost. A fitting way to pay back the people she hurt; returning the home that had been ripped from them so brutally.In the Scout Regiment she finds people she trusts, people she wants to do right by. People she wants to be worthy of by showing them the compassion, loyalty, and honesty they showed her... Yet she lied, not revealing the whole truth about her history.Half truths to acquaintances festered into a facade she abused to lie to friends and comrades.





	1. The Lie

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally written on FFn with about 12 chapters, but I was unhappy with the story direction and wanted to rewrite it. I felt it was just too simple, didn't really focus enough on the canon universe characters and the OC character. It was more focused to the story of SnK/AoT which, of course, we all already know.
> 
> So I rewrote the circumstance the OC is in, the history behind the character, and the relationships she builds with canon characters. I think it's better this way, I think this rewrite will be more fun to read. :)
> 
> I respond to all comments and PMs, so I hope you guys enjoy!

Shiganshina was in ruins. She was there to see it, the homes and shops crushed by boulders from the shattered wall, the wild titans devouring anyone unfortunate enough to be too close to the breach. People screamed and ran, cried and pleaded for a savior. It was indiscriminate slaughter, no matter the gender or age, they met the same agonizing fate.

It was a horrible sight to witness, blood painted every surface she saw. She had even watched a large titan collapse a bridge and fall into the river below, it was enough to submerge a close smaller titan, but not enough to stop the bigger one from advancing on the people. It was scary watching the sheer determination of the titans, how they needed to reach their goal, the food running from them.

She leered over the people from the rooftops, her hands grasping the edges of the building, her breath heavy and excited. As the titans across the river caused the people to flee to her direction, she leapt into action. The force behind her jump enough to crack the sides of the building, the roof tiles shattered from the weight, and the ground beneath her shook as she landed. Turning to see the crowd beside her stop and gasp, her wide animalistic smile stunning the people. With a deep inhale, her roar bellowed out through the streets and secured the fate of the people desperate to escape. She lunged at the people in front of her with her mouth wide open, people ran in all directions, a few she hit with her body, injuring enough to distract her from the escaping crowd.

Some were unlucky and were caught in her massive jaws, when her body stopped moving, her mouth crushed anything in her teeth and she swallowed what she could. More would come, she was lucky, they were not. She needed more, it wasn't what she wanted, what she searched for. The remaining body parts and limbs falling from her teeth, she turned around and caught sight of the people she lunged into, people she landed on top of were dead, others with shattered bodies, all served her purpose. Her elongated limbs reached out for those still alive and unable to run from her. From there, she had her own private feast, other titans in the area too busy following the other people who made it away from her waiting jaws.

All anyone could hear was screaming, the groans of titans, and the collapsing buildings. It was a real mess, she had a small hand in it even though the plan that caused this was not of her doing; her part was to cause chaos.

During the attack on Shiganshina, she took her own toll on the people there, but her acts against the innocent people of Shiganshina were as grotesque as the rest of the titans. Her constant and merciless slaughtering of the people in the city was carried out mindlessly, she was wild, without sentient thought. She was just as bad as the rest of the titans.

She had seen her fair share of the military that resided within the walls, what is known as the Garrison and Survey corps. A few tested their luck with her and a few failed, they classified her as an Abnormal Titan, her actions did not line up with the average titan and as such, she was targeted differently. This was not something she understood, only something that threatened her. All she knew is what was in front of her face and that she wanted them, they spun around in front of her, appearing to glide in the air without wings. It was good for her that the Garrison had not fought a titan in a long time, many of them had never even seen a titan and those that had, only saw them wander outside the walls harmlessly. This gave her a great advantage.

Her wild movements, her speed and flexibility, made it near impossible for the inexperienced Garrison troops to narrow in on her nape. She ran through the streets alternating between her feet and four legs, the first that attacked her had been unable to hook onto her for a clear shot. A team of two soldiers had managed it later on, but had not the foresight to check the area for other titans that lurked behind buildings and one met their fate, eaten alive by a titan smaller than herself; the other escaped to fight another day. There had been other attempts, only one having any semblance of success.

As she hunted for more, smelling the air gingerly, she picked up the scent she was looking for, but did not see it coming. Like the others, it danced in the air, spinning and weaving through her hands. It was smarter than she was and she had no idea. It was a fresh recruit to the Survey corps, newly trained gave this person sharper skills than the older, less agile Garrison troops, but still lacked the experience and confidence needed to survive a large Abnormal titan. None of this made it into her head of course, she hunted, she ate, she wandered; this is all she did. This was something she wanted, she wanted to stop it from cutting her, it aggravated her.

The wide toothy smile on her face twitched, began turning into a scowl, not enough to be truly noticeable. She was enraged, wild, and tired of this flying thing whipping around her head. Her arms hindered the man, he knew he couldn't get close enough to her nape with her hands constantly reaching for him. He needed to handle the obstacle before going in otherwise he'd end up dead.

He was scared, he understood that fear. He didn't want to die, but he was distraught by all the death and suffering around him. It was too much, this was his first day out of training. He wanted to be in the Survey corps with his friends, he wanted to learn how to fight a titan outside the walls. He wanted to feel what it was like outside the walls to begin with. Tense and terrified, he made his first move.

The titan wailing and swinging at him gave him too much of an opening when it reached high for him, one hand near the ground, the other resting on a roof. She was hunched over, still trying to find him and stop him when she felt the slicing pain in her right arm. A powerful and precise stoke of twin blades successfully severed her right hand entirely. She howled, she still was unable to catch him and now she was missing a hand.

With his first attack down, he felt pride. This titan wasn't so tough, he managed to cut the hand off and he never took a hit. He could do this.

Feeling newfound bravery inside, while the titan struggled to catch him, he aimed to dive for her last hand. This hit, if successful, would allow him to cut into her nape and be done with another terror of humanity. His ego cried that he could go back to his friends claiming victory over a large Abnormal titan. He wanted to do this, for all the people that died, and to prove himself ready to be a part of the Survey corps.

The titan stopped moving, the missing hand made it difficult to run on all fours, she leaned to the side, huffing and angry. Her eyes searched hungrily for the offender, she heard so much noise, so much action, that it was nearly impossible to find the right source.

A quiet zip, snap, and there, below her lumbering body, he swung. Her upper body weight was leaning on her left hand, when he made his strike, she allowed herself to fall directly on top of the poor soldier. She heard him call, she felt two long, sharp stings inside her mouth. The blades piercing through her face, the screaming. Rocks and rubble from her fall onto the man had stuck between her teeth, it took a significant amount of force that slowly crunched the rubble before she finally heard him cry out.

And then there was silence. The damage done to her body had only barely begun to heal. She could barely move, she couldn't open her mouth, the blades having stuck in her jaws, and the lower half of the man hung from the strings he shot into her mouth in a final attempt to flee. Things became dark, her body gave out, and she fell to the ground.

What- where am I? Her body felt heavy. She groaned and struggled to move, her head throbbing in pain. Something had happened to her, something she didn't understand. Though as she began to wake up she knew nothing at all. Her mind didn't think to where she was, what had happened; instead her mind was blank. Like a lock on a door missing its key... Whatever was supposed to be in her head was gone.

Though her eyes were burning, she managed to open them and, after a few slow blinks, they began to focus. Stones began to form with tall buildings framing her vision and shattered wagons spread across the cobble. It was filthy, a thick film of dirt and ash wafted passed in dense clouds and covered the ground. It was impossible to see far enough to get a clear picture of her situation.

Her body was aching, screaming in protest as she pushed herself off the cobblestone street, but more pain hit her like a brick wall. Rolling onto her haunches groaning in pain, she looked for the source. It wasn't hard, the wound was massive and the cause still impaled into her abdomen. This object with a wire attached, something she didn't recognize. It looked like it had four hooks around it, bladed hooks that had dug into her flesh.

Her hands grabbed the object, holding her stomach as blood poured to the stones below. Her eyes were wide, fear shook her to her bones. Terrified of the thing in her body, of how much she was bleeding. I... I'm going to die?

In her panic she began to search the street, her eyes desperately trying to see someone to call out for. It looked entirely desolate, not one sound of life. Her breath quickened, heart beginning to pound. "Help! Anyone!" She cried out, gasping in pain. "Somebody, is there somebody out there? I need help, I'm bleeding, please!" Her voice echoed down the street and not a single response.

It was empty, her calls useless. There wasn't a single person anywhere close enough to help her.

She was alone.

Her throat tightened, her chest convulsed. With a sneer she bent over and coughed, vomiting blood. She continued to cough violently, more blood dripping heavily from her mouth.

A sob escaped her, tears burned her eyes and left clear streaks through the dirt and blood on her face. It was hard to breathe and with her throat tightening as she cried only made it harder. She looked back down to the thing in her stomach hesitantly, the image burned into her brain. It was gruesome and to know that the shredded flesh, pool of blood, and impalement was all her... if she managed to survive, it would haunt her for the rest of her life.

She sat there, bleeding and in shock. Completely frozen and slowly becoming resigned to her death. She was in agony, she felt hopeless. She awoke only to die shortly after.

Her eyes rolled back behind her eyelids. she looked dead, her body limp as she rested there waiting for the end to come.

...

. . . But it never came. Rather she began to feel a heat building up in her chest spreading outwards all throughout her body. The heat climbed, burning her up but not causing any pain. In fact, some of her pain began to fade away.

Confused, her eyes reluctantly turned back down. Her face was quickly hit with soft steam rising from her own body, the blood covering her began to burn away into steam as well. Slowly but surely, she was cleaned of blood stains and her wound healed around the object in her stomach. She knew instantly what she needed to do to get out of here. This metal foreign object needed to be removed and she was the only one around to do it.

Her determination grew and while she suffered, fought against her seemingly hopeless situation, the wounds healing so quickly gave her the kick she needed. There was a mix of panic, fear, and pain that drove her to remove this object. Her hands gripped the metal hooks, the sharp edges dug into the palms of her hands. Gritting her teeth, she pulled it out inch by inch. She tried not to scream when she removed it, but she gave up trying.

With a cry the object came free and she threw it to the ground. The metal clanged as it hit the stone signaling her freedom from that pain. She doubled over, the pain was instantly beginning to subside. Steam kept rising from her, the heat bathing her until finally, it stopped, and she no longer felt the wounds.

Taking careful breaths, she sat up in relief. She felt like she had just cheated death somehow... it was ridiculous to believe she could just heal from a fatal injury. Yet there she was, completely fine.

Putting her feet on the ground she rose and, still stunned. She even felt strong, unfazed entirely about her prior ordeal. It was as if it never happened.

She wasn't sure what to do next, no idea what path she should take to move forward... Other than actually moving forward. Putting one foot in front of the other she made her way into the streets she did not recognize, more clouds of dirt rolling over the rooftops and into the alleyways.

It didn't take long before she found evidence of what had happened to this town. As she turned down another street she discovered bodies, limbs, resting on the cobbles carelessly. They were not collected bodies ready to be taken to a funeral, they were bloody bodies missing arms, legs, heads, half their bodies. They had been torn apart like paper, cracked and bitten apart.

Pausing to observe the aftermath ahead of her, she began to realize what had happened.

For whatever reason she recalled images of half eaten people. But she was not just watching it happen in front of her, she was seeing through her own eyes. Massive hands raised towards some poor soul on the street below her, the hands stealing them away. They screamed, pleaded for their lives as she raised them to her mouth.

With a sickening crack the body was snapped in her jaws and swallowed. Whatever was left was dropped and she continued on the rampage.

She remembered what she had done... She remembered Shiganshina. The death toll was enough to make her sick; it was done by a raging beast, not a living person. She looked back on those nightmarish memories, able to apply her own conscience to her actions. In truth her titan was wild and acted without reason, it just so happened to save her. It cost so many lives that she did her best not to think about it. Their lives were not worth her own, considering how many people she ate.

This realization took her breath away and she fell to her knees, eyes staring at the bodies, face pale. "I... I didn't mean to. I didn't want to..."

She held her knees to her chest, still staring as tears poured from her eyes. Her hands dug into her hair, holding her head. She sobbed openly, her cries echoing down the streets as the guilt gripped her heart.

"I'm sorry..."


	2. Trost and the Titans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trost, Wall Rose. 850.

Eva pushed a cart of cleaning supplies along the Wall, delivering it to the rest of the group maintaining the cannons. It wasn't hard thankfully, the rails atop the Wall were very well kept. It made work like this a lot quicker.

The metal wheels screeched as she stopped, turning to see the rest of her cadet squad hard at work. Which was code for not working at all.

She didn't much mind, she didn't really know these cadets. They were others from the 104th that had chosen the Garrison Regiment, they were not ready or willing to fight titans outside the Walls. Not that she could really blame them; joining the Scouts was like signing your own death certificate. It wasn't the place where people went to live long fulfilling lives.

Scrubbing the heavy iron feet of the cannons was hard work, rust didn't just come out with a light rinse. She had been at it since early morning, working to maintain and repair the cannons guarding the Walls.

It was an interesting change from the last few years to do small labor tasks like this. She absentmindedly wondered about before and after her time entering the Walls, how far she had come and how drastically different her future was than she first anticipated. It was a welcome change; any other option ended in a short life. Here she had a chance to do more.

She leaned back, sitting on her haunches, wiping the sweat off her brow. It was hot on the Walls, the sun beating down on them and radiating from the metal surrounding her.

Eva always felt... wrong being on the Walls. Like every step, every tiny movement compromised the Walls. Her footfalls were heavy, she felt like her entire body was heavier than normal. Compensating for the guilt she felt afflicting her she tried to carry herself lighter, every inch of movement was gentle and calm. Almost like she was apologizing to the stones of the Wall for what had happened to Shiganshina and Wall Maria.

Guilt riddled her mind and body, it was impossible to ignore how it chained her to her history.

Looking behind her she saw the faces of the other cadets, Garrison soldiers soon, moving around completing their own work. It was highly unlikely she would ever see them again so she spent no time meeting them. It wasn't her style to go around introducing herself to everyone she crossed paths with. Also a tad dangerous considering her rather sensitive position, the less people she knew the better.

No one during training had ever mentioned titans becoming humans so she assumed it was an unknown possibility. She didn't know either, but she was scared that somehow they would find out, they would catch her.

Being discovered was certainly a deep rooted fear that kept her on her toes. But it wasn't really her greatest concern. She wanted to do something about Shiganshina, about the role she played in its destruction.

She woke up in Shiganshina, no single complete memory of the previous events. All she had were spots, flashes of slow moving and distorted images. Many of them she watched people being eaten - by herself. Tearing them apart, tearing them away from their family. Whoever these people were she knew she had hurt them in a way unforgivable. Some may defend her if they knew the reality of her situation, but it didn't matter to her.

All she saw while she sat alone in the dark waiting for sleep to come, was the crying faces contorted in terror and agony. Hearing screams and desperate pleas for mercy. It never helped while she was wild, she only wished she could've stopped back then.

Now here she stood, donning the uniform of the military ready to fight against creatures just like her. Titans that would bring everyone to ruin, a world dominated in fear. She hated it and only wanted the chance to make a difference, no matter the dangers to herself.

It was important to her that she do all this, helping people, saving people, defending the Walls; as a human being. She didn't feel like one of them, something in her head kept reminding her that she wasn't one of them. Something separated her from the people of these walled cities, even from the other soldiers. This thing she was, she could do - her place in Shiganshina.

This would never change and she wasn't trying to do so. All she wanted was a chance to do better. If she saved even one life she would know it wasn't for nothing. One life did pale in comparison to the many people she killed as a wild titan... who knows how many? A handful? A dozen? A hundred or more? But that one person would live their life, have friends and family cry upon their safe return, they will grow to have a family with children and a loving home... They would be happy.

That's all she wanted.

Golden light flickered in the corner of her eye, a loud thunderous crack behind her vibrated through the stone. Her eyes widened, she knew the sound. Snapping her head towards the light she saw the face of the Colossal Titan. It was standing in front of the gate; she was at the south edge atop the Wall so the gate was not too far away. Far enough however to not suffer damage when the steam from the Colossal Titan burst forth.

People and objects could be seen launched from the Wall. The cadets around her panicked.

"T-The Colossal Titan! It's here for Trost! It's going to break the gate!" They all stood frozen in spot, but Eva was not scared of this titan. She wanted to know why it did what it did, why Shiganshina was destroyed, why it and the Armored Titan breached Shiganshina and Wall Maria. She knew that electricity surrounded her when she turned into a titan, but was that the case here? Was this a person that turned into a titan too? Were there really others?

If so, why would they slaughter hundreds of people? If not, then how did this titan come to exist in the first place? Most importantly; how could she kill it.

Eva jumped from the edge of the Wall, her ODM gear pierced the stone wall as she sailed from section to section, making her way to the gate. The other cadets had not reacted as quickly as she did and she felt no need to stay with them. She needed to move and fast, there would not be much time before the Armored Titan showed up and tried to destroy the gate to Wall Rose.

She would do everything in her power as a soldier to stop them, but if the need arises she would happily revert into a titan just to stop them. This was a good chance to protect people she had hurt before in the same situation as Shiganshina.

She heard the other cadets moving behind her now, they had finally freed themselves of shock. Eva was too far ahead and was far too quick for them to catch up to, she could fly laps around these other cadets. Her experience with the ODM gear easily surpassed theirs.

By the time she began to near the gate, she realized it was far too late. The gate was destroyed, rubble piled around the Wall and parts had flown into the town, crushing homes and people below their weight. Eva knew she could not stop the Colossal, but she could fight the titans that would come pouring in through the breach. So she dropped from the Wall, landing on a roof just at the base.

The other cadets had reached her, landing around her. "What are we going to do?!" One exclaimed, "We can't fight them all! We're just cadets!"

"They're going to come flooding in, everyone is going to die!" He cried, holding his head in his hands. His face reddened in fear, his eyes wide in a desperate plea for this all to be some horrible nightmare.

Another stood closer to Eva, "You were joining the Scouts, right?" He asked and received a single nod from Eva. "Well, if you want to fight titans, here's your chance. I wanted to be in the Military Police, but I realized I would never be like those other cadets. Garrison it is; I don't want to fight titans." He was solemn, not quite as panicked as the other three.

"You don't have a choice anymore." Eva turned to him, clicking blades into her grips. Her expression was stern, some combination of anger and determination. The other cadets scared out of their minds looked at her fearfully. She pointed a new blade towards the breach, "I'm going there. I'm going to fight. Go back on the Wall, back to HQ, go run home. I don't care where you go, but I will not stand here and do nothing."

The Garrison soldier to-be sighed, "Even if I wanted to run, they would execute me. All of us. Desertion is a crime and we trained to be soldiers, we're meant to protect people. Not run away when things get rough." He clicked his blades onto his grips, "I'm with you, but I'm not an ODM genius like our top ten... I don't expect to survive this." His jaw clenched. He was no coward, he had his own path and the Scouts weren't a part of it. Still, he wouldn't back down from a fight.

Other cadets pulled their blades out, still clearly terrified. "We can't run. We have to go through them." She swallowed hard, "We'll die if we run, we'll die if we fight. I-I can't shame my family name by deserting!"

Eva turned towards the gate, seeing the very first of the titans enter. Cannons could be heard in the distance firing constantly. "Fighting them at the gate is suicide. We have to wait until they get into the town, otherwise our ODM gear is useless. There are still people down there, but they are fleeing. We have to hope that they've all evacuated this area already."

"If we wait too long there will be too many!" Another cadet approached the edge of the roof, sweating.

"Can't exactly fight without anything to use our ODM gear on. We have to wait. Unless you want you want to fight them on the ground." Eva rounded behind the cadets, her ODM gear firing off to the next building swinging her around between the streets. The other cadets on her trail, none of them ever expecting to have to fight and wholly unprepared for the reality of it.

She didn't expect them to survive long if they were unable to get themselves together.

Titans began entering the streets and Eva went straight to work. She ducked low, her boots just barely an inch above the cobblestone street. A titan stepped onto the same road, turning towards her and her squad. It didn't move oddly, it simply wandered around. This was not an abnormal so bringing it down was easy. Eva fired straight up beside it, her cables releasing as she flew high enough above its head, then she hooked them into the shoulder of the titan. With a single sweeping dive, her blades sliced through its nape without resistance. Just like in training, all she had to do was cut deep enough.

The titan stopped moving, falling to the ground below with steam burning away as its body faded.

She stopped on another roof nearby, looking at her work. The first titan she brought down as a human was painfully easy. There was no challenge to taking down a single lone titan, the real difficulty would come when titans began to file out through the city. Looking back to the gate she saw many more titans wandering inside. A few fell into the deep trenches, but most got through.

Eva could see and hear people running away from the destruction and death. She was glad they were getting away before the full force of the titans reached them, but that wouldn't last forever if the soldiers didn't fight back.

So she kept at it, the cadets at her back. They didn't fight nearly as hard or as effectively as she did. From titan to titan, Eva flew between them. She picked fights with the ones alone, those far enough away from others that she could kill them without being worried that another would grab her. The cadets might not have been able to kill a titan efficiently, but they did prove to be excellent distractions.

They did attack though, to their credit. Albeit tentatively, so much so without Eva around to cut the titan down before it got to them, they were likely going to die right then. She was no star cadet, but she hid a great secret. Eva was incredibly fast and strong, she felt no need to stand out from the crowd. While she was out here she could do what she pleased.

So she cut down as many titans as she could. Her ODM abilities were excellent, her strength to cut open the nape of the titan was more than sufficient. Fighting titans was nothing she couldn't handle.

The first abnormal they encountered however, was too much for one of the cadets with her. It jumped onto the side of a building before launching itself across the street, its jaws clamping down around one of the Garrison cadets instantly snapping her in half. The others cried out, froze on the spot.

Eva couldn't save the girl, she would bleed out in seconds. But she could bring down the abnormal while its mouth was full. Skimming across the adjacent roof, tiles shattering below her, she went low to avoid the titans hands reaching out for her. Swiping up its spine to slice into its nape, bringing it down from the building with a great slam. It took out half the building with it.

She stumbled coming back down when clipped by some flying debris. Eva soared to the street below, rolling from the momentum. Taking a few deep breaths, she stood back up and saw her squad looking down at her from the rooftops. Her ODM gear brought her back into the skies, showing she was still able to fight.

They rejoined her, seeing incoming soldiers flying over the city. Three titans stood between the two squads and Eva went straight for them. The first didn't see her coming, killing it was easy with its back turned to her. The next heard the noise and faced her. A cadet circled it, coming in for the kill as fast as he could. He didn't pay attention to his surroundings enough to realize the third titan had reached for him.

Its grip crushed him before it brought the cadet to its mouth. He only had a moment to recover from his daze to realize the mouth of the titan was upon him. His scream was cut short as it bit into him, tearing his head from his body, stuffing the rest of him in its mouth too.

Eva ran across the rooftop, using a chimney to jump behind the titan and latch her cables to its nape. She used her gas to boost her approach, she had been too close to get a decent cut into the nape. With the additional propulsion of gas she was able to make it barely deep enough to bring the titan down.

The other one that had eaten her cadet teammate was cut down by another soldier, part of the squad that they had been approaching.

"Cadets! Operation Colossal Titan Response is in effect." The Garrison soldier landed in front of Eva's squad. "Report to HQ!" He glanced over to the titans they had just slain. His eyes rested back on Eva, though he said nothing more.

"Yes, sir!" The surviving cadets of Eva's squad saluted and the groups parted ways.

They raced back to HQ which was only a few buildings over. Titan blood still covering Eva's hair, skin, and uniform. The steam had just started to fade it away, but it would take a minute before it was all gone. Rushing to the courtyard, they used their ODM gear to land on the awnings, jumping down into the courtyard safely.

Eva sheathed her blades and looked around, the rest of the cadet squads had already gathered there. Eva and her team were late. Everyone was rushing around trying to reach their squads and get supplied before the coming battle. Eva tapped her tanks finding them rather low. She had burned through a lot more of her gas than she wanted, having used a lot to kill titans quickly so people could escape.

Once the civilians were out, she could take things at her own pace. Right now was not the time to be slow. Her squad had parted from her, gone to rejoin the Garrison soldiers as they were assigned. Eva just watched them leave, their eyes looked haunted with the memories of their teammates being eaten. It was a shame anyone had died, no matter how unavoidable it was.

So Eva searched for her fellow Scouts to-be. Eren, Armin, Mikasa. Those she knew for certain, but others... she was unsure on. Others wanted to go to the Military Police, the rest were going to the Garrison. She only wanted to be with a squad that she could count on, people who wanted to fight titans, not those that would abandon her the second they saw one.

The first one she saw was Mikasa, crossing the courtyard with a purpose. Her eyes searched the crowd likely looking for her friends. Eva went to join her and was quick to hear the arguing just beside her. Mikasa's head turned to them and Eva watched Eren and another cadet yelling at each other. She had seen these two fight back during training too many times to care, but now was not the time to attack fellow soldiers.

"You can do this, Jean. All right? The Military Police will still be waiting for you tomorrow." Eren released Jean's jacket with a glare that could kill.

"Hey," Eva stood beside them, a dull look in her eye. Steam billowed around her, titan's blood slowly disappearing. "This really isn't the time."

Eren looked her over, "Eh?" Suddenly, a dark expression came over his face. "You've been fighting titans already?" His interest was not surprising in the least. It fit him perfectly as she expected.

"Brought a few down with my squad before the Garrison ordered us to report to HQ." She glanced to Jean. "Will you be okay, Jean?" Her concern, unlike Eren's titan killing fixation, was actually a surprise. With little to no acknowledgment from Eva in the three years they trained together, having her speak to him without provocation was out of the normal.

Though, Jean supposed, today was not normal.

"I don't think anyone here is going to be fine." He huffed to himself, "People are dying- I was going to the Military Police. I'm not dedicating my life to killing titans like this suicidal maniac! Now I'm going to die before I even get to join."

Eva nodded, "Most likely." Her answer was straight, unhelpfully harsh. Jean gritted his teeth. "If you keep saying you're going to die, than you probably are going to die... Instead, focus on what you want to happen. You want to survive this?"

"Yes..." Jean grunted.

"You want to live to make it into the Military Police?" Eva's face became more visible, the blood finally steaming off almost entirely.

"Yes!" His answer more irritated.

"Then make it happen." Eva brushed off her jacket, droplets of titan blood trickling to the ground and steaming away into the air. "Don't tell yourself you're going to die and everyone here is dead. Don't sit around and whine. The more you doubt yourself, the less likely you'll be to live. So have faith in your abilities. You weren't in the top ten during graduation for nothing, Jean."

He sighed, not saying another word before turning around and walking off in a huff. He was angry, but his emotions were high as he faced fighting titans in Trost. Everyone felt the same, panicked and terrified.

"Eren." Mikasa approached after Jean left. "If things take a turn for the worse, I want you to come find me, alright?"

He was surprised at Mikasa. "What? We're in completely different squads!" He knew Mikasa was determined to protect him, but Eren wanted to fight for himself. Eva understood his reasons... even though he was not the best fighter in training his refusal to give up made him extremely hard to deny.

"Look, this is going to get ugly and when it does, the plan goes out the window." Mikasa shared that same strong will Eren did, though she was pliable only to Eren's demands. "Come and find me so I can protect you."

Eren was offended. Not by her concern, but by her smothering. He wanted to fight for himself, not have someone fight for him. "Who the hell do you think you are?!"

As they argued, a man approached and interrupted them. "Ackermann, you're with me!" The trio turned around to see a Garrison soldier addressing them with orders for Mikasa. "You've been assigned to the rear guard on special orders. Let's get moving." He seemed so completely calm about their situation, about Trost's breach.

"But sir, I'm a cadet! I'll slow everyone down!" Mikasa's voice wavered trying to convince him she should remain with the other cadets. It was useless of course, Eva saw her fighting during training. She was the top cadet by a landslide, no one even came close to her natural skill. Eren was incredulous to see Mikasa trying to talk her way out of the elite squad.

"What? You're not being asked for a self-evaluation here." He didn't care what she thought of herself, whether she believed it or not. They needed strong soldiers to protect the people. "The mass exodus is falling apart. We need as many elite soldiers as possible to get things back on track." He left it at that, taking no more excuses from Mikasa to avoid fighting with them.

"Sir, with all due-!"

Eren headbutted Mikasa. Eva's eyes widened for a moment, shocked at Eren's sudden strike. He did it to snap her out of whatever obsession she had with protecting Eren. While Eva understood wanting to protect friends and family, Mikasa could do much more than that. She was so incredibly skilled she could save not a few cadet squads, but the hundreds of families desperately trying to evacuate Trost.

While Eren and Armin were important to Mikasa, they are all soldiers. They needed to go where they were best suited.

"You've been given a direct order! Pull it together, now!" Eren barked, angered by Mikasa's refusal of service. "This is bigger than the two of us and you know it! We're on the verge of extinction here. Get some damned perspective!"

Mikasa lowered her head. Agreeing with Eren or not, she still would do what she had to. "You're right. I'm sorry. This whole situation just has me out of my head." As Eren turned to leave her and return to his squad, she grabbed the cuff of his jacket. "Just promise me one thing. Whatever happens, don't get yourself killed." She wanted something at least to comfort her.

Instead, Eren turned away and left her standing without an answer. Eva was going to join him as she was a cadet without a place to go. She was late for the briefing and was unsure what squad she belonged to.

"Eva." Mikasa addressed her. She looked at the eerily calm girl. "Keep him alive. Please."

She wasn't sure how to answer. She couldn't promise that, who knows what he would get up to out there. Eren was reckless and risked his life constantly. During training his drive to succeed often overcame his sense of self awareness, ending up in bruises, sprains, and fractures. This was just how he was. So she couldn't realistically promise Mikasa anything.

Though, Eva wasn't going to let anyone just kill themselves if she could help it. Unlike the two cadets from her squad before. Had she known what they planned, she would've stopped them. But they jumped in head first and got themselves killed.

"I'll try, Mikasa. I can't promise you he won't. There's a lot out there, too many unprepared cadets facing titans. Eren might not be scared, but he is foolish." Eva placed a hand on Mikasa's shoulder, "If I can, I will. If I can't... I'm sorry. I don't want anyone to die out there. I hope you'd be able to forgive my failings."

Mikasa did not respond as Eva walked away, ready to rejoin the fighting. The titan blood had dissipated while she was talking with them, a welcome change to the bloody wet clothes before.

She rejoined Eren, following him into HQ to start resupplying. Outside they could just faintly hear the sounds of titans stomping around, it was so far away though that they all knew there was still time to get gas, blades, and jump back out there.

Eva and Eren regrouped the second they were ready finding their squad just finishing up back in the courtyard. Comprised of Eren, Eva, Armin, Thomas, Mina, Milieus, and Nack. Eva instantly earned the attention of a familiar friend. Armin smiled, "Eva, you're coming with us?"

She shrugged, "I got here too late for the briefing. My squad didn't get word by the time we starting fighting the titans." Glancing down, she thought she should respect the people that fought with her. They had been so scared to do it, but they pushed through for her. "We lost two cadets in the fighting, but brought down five titans. I only hope it was enough to let the people escape."

Armin gasped, a forlorn look on his face. "I'm sure they did. We haven't seen any titans grab anyone yet... Their sacrifice wasn't in vain."

It was a kind thing to say. Eva didn't offer any appreciation for his words, not because she wasn't grateful for his kindness, just that it was hard to think they died so painfully. "Right."

"Come on. Let's get out of here, we have orders to join up with the middle guard." Eren directed the squad. It was likely he would take lead, even if there was someone else as brave as he was - his dominating personality would take over instantly. So they followed him into the fight. They were stationed between the front lines and the elite squad protecting the people as they evacuated.

The rooftops behind the vanguard weren't close to being safe. Too many titans easily slipped through their soldiers, it was all too much for any squad too handle no matter how experienced. This fight would not be easy and many more people would die. Eva looked to her group, she only knew Armin and Eren. She also recognized Mina, but that was it.

She wondered if they would survive and, if they did, would they come out of this whole? Many soldiers might escape with their lives, but did so without an arm or a leg. She tried not to think about them getting torn apart, instead focusing on keeping herself alive to help her squad. No matter what she did she would be useless if she was dead.

Eva raised a brow as she watched the Garrison soldiers closely. Could she even die? So many times she hit the ground too hard, breaking bones, herself even losing a limb. No matter what she always regenerated, the wounds never lasted long. It didn't mean they didn't hurt, just that it wouldn't take her out of the fight.

Then the question arose. If she lost a limb here or broke a bone and someone saw it, would she regenerate if their life was in danger? Where was the line she couldn't cross? If someone witnessed a titan biting off her arm and she saw them get grabbed by a titan, about to be bitten apart, would she regenerate and save them? Would the risk of being discovered outweigh the cost of a soldier's life...

She didn't know what to do, not really. She was just as lost as anyone else. The titans didn't scare her, her nerves weren't shot like theirs - she didn't know what to do about herself. About this secret she was keeping.

"Listen up! Whoever kills the most titans gets bragging rights." One of the cadets grinned. They were growing more confident with each second they had to prepare. Eva was pleased to see them coming together.

"Better not fudge your scores!"

Snapping them out of their camaraderie, a Garrison soldier yelled to them. "Squadron Thirty-four, move out! The vanguard needs support!"

Eren, pumped up for the fight, turned to his squad and rallied them. "Right! Give 'em hell!"

With a battle cry, the squad leapt from the rooftop. Eva was last to join, keeping to their backs just in case. Their path through the city was a bit reckless; charging right through at perfect height to be grabbed. Eva tried to keep close to the buildings, using them as cover if a titan appeared. Inches from the windows and stone walls of the now abandoned city, Eva watched the squad race into battle.

She was certain they would not like what they saw there. They would not survive if they moved like this with titans around.

It wasn't like she wanted to be right. The second she heard the alert she knew. "We've got an abnormal!" Eren shouted from the front of the squad. The shock of an abnormal threw the squad into a panic. They weren't prepared, they had no chance to fight titans that could even vaguely plan their attacks. "Pull up!" Eren ordered, their ODM gear firing over a bell tower, swinging them around the side to avoid the titan as it lunged towards them.

With a loud crash, the titan hit the bell tower and loosened their ODM cables, causing them to fall onto a nearby roof. Eren barely managed to hold onto the edge. Armin and the rest standing near him on the roof, watching the titan as it regained itself. Eva approached from behind them, glancing between them to figure out what they were terrified of. Just the titan? No, not even close. It was the missing teammate they feared for.

Eva gripped her blades tightly, ready to jump in when out the corner of her eye she saw more titans moving in. Five titans weaving through the streets attracted by the noise and smell of humans. She stopped before she made a suicidal dash to the abnormal. He was caught, already pinned between the teeth of the abnormal titan. With so many other titans surrounding him, she couldn't make it in time without getting caught herself.

He was swallowed whole and the squad froze, horrified to see their teammate so easily slain. It was a harsh reminder that titans were not pushovers like the practice dummies back in training. They were capable of fighting back.

Eva lowered her blades, unwilling to charge into death to save an already dead cadet. She sighed, it was time to join the vanguard. They hadn't even reached their rendezvous yet.

"You bastard!" She heard Eren scream still hanging from the ledge. Enraged, he let go of the roof and charged into the thick of titans.

With a sharp inhale, Eva called out to him. "Eren!" Armin echoed the cry. "Eren!"

"Stay with the group!"

Eva growled to herself. He's going to die out there! The other cadets didn't seem to care that Eren's recklessness was leading them all to their deaths. They chased after him anyways, rushing straight into titan territory. There were too many, too many they couldn't see between the streets. Eva had no idea how many more there were aside from the tall ones visible above the roofs.

She didn't want to abandon her squad, but she couldn't die out there because Eren had no concern for his own life.

Stepping off the rooftop, she followed the squad. No matter how insane this attack was she didn't want them to die. She told Mikasa that much, she said she would try. Unless they were incredibly lucky only a few of this squad would die here and be forced to regroup with another squad.

It didn't take more than a minute before Eren met his end. His suicidal tendencies caught up with him in his blind rage. A titan jumped from the street having seen him coming, its jaws too slow to catch him entirely, but enough to snap his leg off. Eren crashed hard, shattering roof tiles as he slid to a stop. He was knocked out cold, but likely still alive.

At least for now anyways. It wouldn't last long, he would bleed out quickly if he was not given medical attention.

Armin saw him fall, stopping on the roof just across from Eren's unconscious body. "Eren!" He called out, trying to get his friend's attention. No response came. The rest of the squad raced to catch up, to help the dying boy on the roof.

Suffering the same blindness Eren did, a titan reached out to grab one of the cadets. The speed of the ODM gear combined with the hard stop of the titans hand caused the cadet to die on impact, cracking bones like twigs. Partially behind a building, Eva was not in the best position to kill the titan and still needed to reach the others before they died too. So she passed the titan, rounding its extended hand.

While Mina was not looking a titan grabbed her cable. It was a small titan, hard to spot between the buildings at the speed they were moving. The sudden stop yanked her out of the sky, hitting the wall beside her hard as she fell to the ground.

Eva winced, seeing no one but Armin unharmed. Milieus had been grabbed shortly after Mina was knocked down, the grip of the titan crushing bones from the waist down. So Eva took the best chance to save someone she had. Changing her direction, Eva swung around to help Mina.

She was able to latch onto the titan as it grabbed Mina and started to open its mouth. She only had one chance to make this hit count. Triggering her gas to propel her forward, Eva slashed into the titan's nape deep enough to almost sever the head entirely. The cut was plenty deep enough and the titan fell to the ground, releasing Mina from its grasp.

Eva landed on the head of the titan, turning to see a sobbing Mina pulling herself from under the titan's finger. She was definitely hurt, unable to stand on her own. Eva jumped down, rushing towards her.

"Mina, what's wrong? What's hurting?" She kneeled down, taking Mina's shoulders in her hands.

She was unresponsive, traumatized from almost being eaten. She was going into shock. Eva cursed under her breath, grabbing Mina and lifting her to her side as she stood up. Mina grunted in pain, more tears falling from her eyes. They couldn't stay on the ground though, Mina would have to deal with the pain for now.

Eva brought them to the rooftops, holding the dark haired girl close to her side. She looked for Armin and saw him in the grasp of another titan, being dropped into its open mouth. She couldn't help him anymore, not while he was in the gullet of that titan. Mina went pale. "A-Armin..."

"Don't look." Eva turned around, adjusting her hold on Mina. "We need to get you to the infirmary. If you can, just hold onto me, alright?" Mina didn't answer.


	3. Eva Faust of Shiganshina

She had taken her time, made the steps to get here. Finally, she stood in the field with other cadets ready for training to begin. They stood in rows, saluting their commander as he began his speech. It was less of a rallying lecture and more of a single stream of insults from this man that were frankly entertaining to listen to. She zoned in and out of the yelling, he mostly talked about how hard training will be before they all die anyways when they fight their first titan.

He may be right, but there are many here that will survive their first titan encounter. At least the first, no telling about the next few. She saw how they fell when facing a titan, how many were bitten in half before a stronger comrade brought that titan down. There were a lot of potential cadets here, but no one was officially anything yet. This was day one, effectively a trial run for all those hotheads who rushed into this thinking they were tough or other more desperate souls who wanted to join for the benefits; maybe even to support their family.

But no matter their reason for enlisting, hers was to pay something back to the people she brought death to. It was not her intention, she had no real memory of it only that one soldier dying in the back of an abandoned home. She learned from him what Shiganshina was like. She used the equipment on him to travel without attracting attention, but it wasn't the titans attention she was worried about. It was people, those on the wall and those beyond it. The titans had little to no interest in her unless she provoked them; the second she spilled titan blood was the second they all started to notice her.

So long as she stayed away from them they wouldn't bother her. Now staying out of the path of those people on horseback racing out into the wilds was a bit more difficult. They were observant, they must've had a thousand notes on every detail just outside the walls. So she had to be careful and the gear that deceased soldier left behind was perfect for that.

She learned, she taught herself how to use it. Eventually after a year of trial and error, she got to a point she could fly through the ruins of Shiganshina and what remains inside Wall Maria - forests, towns, some cities. Using this gear was a breeze, she no longer hesitated when using it. After finding out that no matter how hard she crashed she would always heal quickly with no long lasting injuries she became more and more reckless.

Until that recklessness allowed her to fine tune her ability with this gear. She could fly between the narrowest of alleys, skid her boots on the ground, and sling herself into the air above the buildings without a care in the world. It was easy to swing around far above the earth, skimming the sides of buildings, knowing that no matter how far you fall or how hard you hit a wall you will be fine.

It hurt, but it wouldn't kill her.

This was her advantage and, from what she learned, also something she had to hide. Apparently no one had this gear outside the military, it was illegal for a civilian to procure a set. It was not sold to public, it was not permitted use without military approval, and any civilian seen with it is subject to harsh punishment from the law. So she needed to pretend that she had never once used it; like it was her first day all over again.

The commander yelled in the face of every cadet he came across, judging them for anything they said. There was no right answer and no wrong answer. It would always end the same. So they just did what they did and he moved from one terrified cadet to the next optimistic fool so he could begin breaking them down as well.

"Who the hell are you supposed to be!" He stood in front of her, barking out his demands.

"Eva Faust from Shiganshina, sir." She saluted, her tone calm. He could not intimidate her so easily. It wasn't like he really wanted to, once he heard the name of the city he was not too keen on pushing it further at this time. The survivors of Shiganshina would not be phased by the initiation; that would come later in the training. As such, he passed her by without another word.

Then he started right back up with another cadet.

The introductions lasted until the sun began to set. One unlucky cadet was made to run the field between the cabins until dark. Eva watched her run for a bit until she got bored listening to the girl whine not about the running, but the lack of food. So she turned to the cabin and began to head inside. She saw on the porch a small group of cadets gathered, talking.

She overhead a few comments before the question posed to the dark haired boy. "Shiganshina." He answered and she retreated to the cabin.

She threw her things inside, claiming a top bunk in the farthest corner. She didn't want to interact with many people, she had conflicting feelings about interacting with these people. Most of them were quite young, a few were around her age. It was uncomfortable being around so many people with no privacy. Especially knowing some of these people were from Shiganshina too; a place she learned she had rampaged through.

A slight pang of guilt stung her chest before she bottled that away. This was neither the time nor the place.

Storing the few belongings she had away, she changed from the cadet uniform to casual clothing. As expected, at least at some point, another cadet approached her just as she turned away from her bunk. "Hey there!" A girl with dark hair and a sweet smile greeted her, "I'm Mina Carolina, I'm in the bunk just under you. It's nice to meet you!" That smile never faded.

She did not respond at first, keeping her face stoic towards the girl hoping she would get the hint. Mina glanced to the side nervously, "Uh, what's your name? I'm meeting everyone from our potential squad early, we have a lot to learn but I believe good communication and teamwork are the key to making our training easier." Mina wasn't certain why she seemed so... unwelcoming, so she tried to explain her introduction.

"Eva." The single word answer was enough to please the dark haired girl. However, the amount of astonishing chill in Eva's voice just saying a single word definitely made Mina uneasy.

"W-well, I'm from Trost. Where are you from?" Her attempts to bond in the face of Eva's stone wall was admirable.

"Shiganshina." A single word, colder than the last. Mina almost visibly winced. Much to her relief, she was saved by the dinner bell. In a rush, Mina turned to leave. "I-I'll see you later, Eva!" She retreated without another look.

Eva thought nothing more of it.

It was time to join the others in the mess hall - food was a welcome change to the difficult life she lead on the streets when she first joined the city. Starvation was a constant even though outside the walls, in the titan controlled area of Wall Maria there was plenty of food to go around. Just no one to take it, save for her of course.

As she entered the mess hall she began to realize exactly the age group she was a part of. Apparently it was standard for youth to reach a certain age then decide what they were going to do with their lives. Two major paths were the cadets, which can go on to be part of the Garrison, Scouts, or Military Police. The other was to take a civilian life as either farmers, merchants, or some other labor to support the struggling cities.

The same boy from earlier on the porch was talking with a crowd around him. They asked about the attack on Shiganshina, the titan that shattered the gate and the titan that compromised Wall Maria. That and all the other titans that flooded the streets, devouring people like the monsters they are. Eva knew her guilt was strong, but hearing them made it worse. She chose to ignore the conversation as best as she could.

A number of prospective recruits had already left, a good dozen or so leaving the life of a soldier. She didn't really blame them knowing that the titans would make quick work of anyone that hesitates, anyone that cannot commit to a hard path.

Her height, her age; it put her in a strange position with some of the people here. She was taller than eighty percent of the room at least. Those that shared her height were either young adults that were just naturally tall or the very, very few adults that were cadets as well. Not that she particularly cared to join a crowd, simply the stark contrast was noticeable to everyone.

It made her stand out more, something she wanted to avoid at all costs.

She took her food to a table as far from anyone she could, but it was useless. Every table was taken by at least two people. She had to deal with it. Setting her tray on the wooden table, she started eating with haste. Not trying to seem like a ravenous animal tearing through her food though, she just kept it calm and never stopped taking a bite.

The people looked at her and usually would make conversation, but the moment they started her expression gave her away. She did not want to speak, she did not want to hear anyone or anything. The cadets she was sitting with didn't try and conversed between themselves, allowing her to keep at least some privacy. No one bothered her and she bothered no one. This is how she wanted it.

She climbed to her bunk, laid on the bed, and tried to clear her head. It wasn't easy to calm her constantly racing mind, it took some time to finally be calm enough to sleep.

Early morning, the sun barely out and it was time to start the their test. The first day tested their guts, today would see if the remaining cadets had the physical ability. She knew she did, she had used the gear that they would be tested on. She had the strength, perseverance, and agility necessary to progress in training so she was not concerned with herself.

Donning the cadet uniform, she headed out with the other cadets. Many were wide away, chatting away, others looked like the only thing they wanted to do is go back to sleep. She was fine, she didn't really feel a terrible need to sleep. Back in the titan controlled Wall Maria she slept perhaps every other night with no impact on her daily life. Today would be easy, but she needed to act like she had never used ODM gear before. She knew it was illegal to own outside military use, she could not let on she had years of experience.

As they all gathered in the field the cadets took notice of these large metal objects at the front of the group. They had three legs, two cables to the side hanging from the top, and a lever with a soldier beside it to operate the cables.

"It's aptitude test time, so listen up!" Shadis' voice was loud across the entire crowd of cadets. "There is no place for you here if you cannot perform! Fail and be shipped to the fields!" The moment he stopped, cadets were being brought up to the vertical maneuvering test structures and were getting locked in. Once they were lifted, everyone could see who had natural talent, who had promise, and who couldn't handle it.

They called out each cadet whenever the last one was finished. Four passed, two failed, three passed, one failed; on and on the tests went. It was a few hours before Eva finally heard her name called.

This was perhaps the hardest test for her - she needed to fake it and fake it well.

She stepped into the center, letting them hook her into the cables. "Ready, cadet?" The man holding the clipboard asked. She gave him a single nod and he raised his hand, gesturing to the other to start raising the cables.

Her belt tightened, the harness around her held her in place as her feet slowly left the ground. She had no issues balancing, felt not a single moment of instability. For her sake she believed if they knew, she could be arrested. At the very least removed from the cadets. So she created some imbalance by just barely tilting a leg forward or an arm to the side. It made her look like she was working to stay upright, but Shadis was no fool.

His eyes narrowed as he spotted her, his footfalls quick and heavy. As he approached her she felt his eyes burning a hole through her as he inspected her pose, checking to see how she was doing with the vertical gear. He glared at her, "Straighten up. You think I don't know what you're up to? I've seen countless soldiers using ODM not including myself and I know the difference between can't and won't. So straighten up."

Surprised, and chastising herself, Eva instantly balanced without a trace of insecurity. He scoffed, "You've used ODM gear before." It was not a question, it was a statement. He had no doubt at what he was looking at.

"Sir, I have not-" Denial was pointless, though she did attempt it.

"You wouldn't bullshit me to my face, would you, cadet?" His posture was rock solid, this man was not giving her the benefit of the doubt for a second. So he dared her to continue, she wouldn't get another chance.

"No, sir."

"Good! So when I said you've used ODM gear before, what do you say!" He was back to barking at her like he did any other cadet.

"Extensively, sir." Knowing denial was only going to get her in more trouble, she admitted her lies. Tense, unsure what his intent was.

"Correct! Now that you have effectively wasted my time taking this test; get place in place, cadet!" He pointed her back to the crowd surrounding them. She was lowered immediately and rushed back to the others. He turned to face her once again, "And if you have any other skills regarding the upcoming tests then you are to say something first or I'll have you cleaning the mess hall alone for a month!"

She saluted, "Yes, sir!" It was rather foolish to think an experienced soldier like Shadis would be so easily duped. While she had a few years with ODM gear, he had over a decade. Spotting the difference between skill and talent was like night and day for him. She had to be more careful in the future.

For now, among the crowd of murmuring cadets, she watched a certain boy be lifted in the same test structure she was just in. Almost immediately he was flipped around, his head on the ground. It was astonishing how quickly he went down, it was the very second his feet were off the ground. He showed no ability whatsoever and crashed so hard it looked positively painful.

"What is your major malfunction, Yaeger! Straighten yourself up!" Shadis kneeled down, yelling at him to get up. The boy, Yaeger, just seemed completely dazed. As if he couldn't comprehend what was happening, what he had just failed to do.

Cadets were stifling their laughs, others looked as confused as he did. The gear was difficult for the average person, she struggled with it at first as well, but swinging around the second he was off the ground? That was something else entirely. He failed so miserably that she wasn't sure anyone had ever failed that absolutely. It was surprising really, he spoke so bravely and loudly the night before in the mess hall. She heard him, yet did not care to listen.

He was lowered and told he would have another chance tomorrow. If he failed then, he would be sent off to the fields. She felt sorry for him, he was so enthusiastic the night before. If becoming a soldier was his dream... He might need to find a new one.

Cadet to cadet each one performed the test and maybe only a few failed. No one nearly as bad as the boy, but certainly many that did not make the cut. Majority passed though, barely or with flying colors, most passed.

Shadis at least knew for certain she had experience with ODM gear. A point she was unsure was bad or good. It confused her, he confused her, where was the line here? ODM gear is illegal for civilian use, but he knew for certain she used it. Would he reprimand her? Would he punish her? Would she be removed from the cadets and reported to authorities?

He didn't show any sign as to his plans really. He did comment about future tests, though that was hardly much to go on when your life is on the line.

When everyone had finished and usual training had been completed, the sun was setting and the dinner bell rang once more as all the cadets were changing out of their uniforms. Eva shook her long hair loose, brushing it through with her fingers, and left the cabin to join the others in the mess hall.

Food was plenty and she ate as much as they would give her. She needed to keep her strength up and her eyes open for Shadis. There was no telling what that man was up to or what his plan for her was. She needed to focus on her daily exercises while he was present, taking care to note even the slightest change in his demeanor. Shadis is extremely observant as she learned so she needed to make sure that ability did not dig up anything more on her.

Once her tray was cleaned she returned it and began a hasty retreat to the cabin. Hoping to sleep well before the next event tomorrow, she was quickly seized by some zealous cadets.

It was the boy from this morning, the one who flipped during training. He, now with a bandage on his head, rushed up to her with two others on his trail; a blonde haired boy and a black haired girl. He caught her attention quite loudly.

"Hey! Hey!" He stopped just ahead of her, "I heard Instructor Shadis say you're experienced with ODM gear. Teach me how to do it, I need to do this. I can't wash out tomorrow!" His desperate tone made her feel for the kid, but if he required help doing the most basic test than he was unlikely to progress with or without help.

She failed to realize that when he had stopped her, some of the cadets around them were watching. Apparently she had begun to pick up a reputation, despite her attempt to remain invisible. It was exactly that which made her so interesting to the other cadets. Her history with ODM gear as Shadis exclaimed definitely put her on a hot topic list, but also her severe outward appearance brought her more peering eyes. Her public image was shaping up to be this intimidating woman hiding in the shadows.

Gossip would run rampant over the next few years of training. A fact she disliked, but at least not all of these cadets she would see again. Signing up for the Scout Regiment was not a popular choice.

Eva thought to herself a moment, staring at the face of this panicked kid. If he failed tomorrow she would never see him again and life would go on, training would go on. With or without her help it didn't much make a difference here, she figured he would either prove it tomorrow or that would be that. "I don't really have the time."

His face blanched, "W-What?!" He gasped, "Time?"

His success was not her concern, she did not wish to stick her neck out for anyone regardless of how poorly or how well they do. She was here to train, learn what she did not already know, and progress into the Scout Regiment for her own reasons. This kid was needed to take care of himself, learn how to survive on his own before he could learn how to survive in a team.

She didn't want to be known as the person that helps others out. She wanted to be unknown, ignored. The boy behind Yaeger spoke, his considerably softer tone actually startled her. "It would be a great help. Please, all he's ever wanted to be is a soldier. I don't know how we could repay you, but if there's anything we could do." He offered with a hand on his friend's shoulder.

Her expression softened for a split second, surprising the two kids pleading with her, before returning to her usual stoic stare. She crossed her arms, eyes darting to the side. "I don't have any special wisdom to impart. I need my rest and you do too." She turned to leave, rejecting their request.

It didn't feel great, but then again... neither did eating the people of their home town. Shiganshina. She recalled, knowing they survived the destruction and death. Eva was not accustomed to the overwhelming guilt she felt just speaking to them. Earlier, just hearing they survived the attack was hard enough... But actually standing in front of them, talking to them...

The guilt in her chest threatened to choke the life out of her. She wasn't sure what she would do if she had to spend more time with them. She simply wasn't ready.

So she left them, more guilt welling up in her throat as she fell onto her mattress with an exhausted huff. The day was over and she was all too ready for the next.

When the next day came, the boy who failed so miserably managed to stay upright for a good few seconds before spinning in place once again. It was a clear improvement, but not enough.

The cadets had cheered him on, wanting him to succeed as much as he did. His talk about being the best soldier, the soldier to wipe out the titans - while no one really believed it, his enthusiasm had won them over. They wanted him to train, to kill titans for their destruction of Shiganshina. His story, his personality; it was a bit infectious for the new cadets.

But as he fell and the operator lowered him to the ground, their cheering died out to a sympathetic silence. Until Shadis approached him. "Wagner, please exchange belts with Yaeger." The surprise from everyone was clear, even from Wagner himself.

Quick to agree, he removed his ODM belt and handed it off to Yaeger. Eagerly buckling it in place, he was raised once again and this time; he stayed up. Balancing just as well as anyone else, he proved he was capable. Something Shadis was perhaps more knowledgeable about than he let on, but no one could tell in the slightest.

"Your equipment was defective." He raised the belt in front of him, Yaeger's old broken buckle. "If given a piece of functional gear, you might not be worthless after all..." He twisted the leather belt in his hands, inspecting the metal. "... Quartermaster didn't notice this broken clasp. Might have to visit the Supply Depot and crack a couple of skulls."

Cadets were astonished at his ability to struggle and train with a broken belt. They spoke between themselves, excited to see him finally use the vertical gear successfully. To know that he wasn't failing, his gear had failed him.

"So you mean I... I didn't wash out?" He asked nervously, his breath labored with anxiety.

Shadis paused, watching the kid balance just fine on the gear. "You made the cut. Now keep training, cadet!"

Everyone was thrilled to move on and the real training began. Tonight was the first night that they would start the harder courses, the training that would decide their effectiveness as a soldier and whip them all into shape. Eva was ready for it.

They ran in heavy rain, jogging through deep mud with field cargo on their backs. She pushed ahead easily, completely unfazed by the additional weight. It felt like nothing in her hand, like holding a shirt - she would occasionally forget she was even holding onto it.

She stayed in the group though, faking her stress and exhaustion when in reality she felt none. Standing out was trouble, blending in was her real key to success. So here she was, running in the midst of the others without a single second of above or below average performance. There were those that pushed far ahead and one in specific that fell far behind.

It was the young boy with Yaeger, he just wasn't physically strong. It wasn't his best attribute, though she didn't really know what was. She had only met him that once so she knew little to nothing about him.

Seeing another cadet slow his pace to help the boy comforted her. Though he was adamant, took his pack, and raced forward despite his exhaustion. He certainly impressed her; that determination was good for a soldier.

The cadet that went to help him just grinned and rejoined the group. He was just as pleased.

After that training, the next was full of ODM gear training with titan dummies.

They were tasked with striking the dummies as they should a titan with the aim to kill. So they raced towards their targets, slicing apart the cushions of the dummies' napes. People directly challenged each other, trying to reach each new dummy before the others. Their grades would change their opportunities and for some, the top ten was not just a potential option, but a requirement.

So they pushed harder than anyone else, fighting harder and harder to earn that spot.

Eva just did what she would, choosing to slice any titan dummy she came across, but not so aggressively that Shadis or the others would really take notice. Same as before. She heard a lot of talk between the other cadets until the training session was complete and they all returned to the ground. ODM training was the most popular class of them all. No real surprise there.

Hand to hand combat training was uneventful. Some challenged her, some didn't, she didn't much care. The test was useless and meant nothing in the long run so she largely skipped it by tolerating a few challenges from other cadets.

The days flew by and the next time she looked up, it was graduation day.

She stood in line with every other cadet, saluting their leaders with relief that training was finally over. "Sir!"

"As of this moment, you have three options open to you. Choose wisely." She stood near the back, watching them address the top ten cadets. "The Garrison Regiment, whose job it is to reinforce the Walls. The Scout Regiment, who ride out into titan country to take back what is ours. And the Military Police Regiment, maintaining law and order under orders from his Royal Majesty. Those cadets eligible for the Military Police have already been named."

They stood at the very front, a row separate from the rest of the cadets. "The rest of you, take a look, these are the top of your class."

It was all those cadets than fought tooth and nail for the best of the best. Some for the chance to be Military Police, others for an entirely different reason. She was thankful to finally be out of cadets and moving onto the regiment she aimed for.

Celebrations began and all the cadets were there, eagerly discussing their choice of regiment and the friendships they forged along the way. It was day for them to be proud of, a day for relaxation and excitement before their future posts. Regardless of their choice, it would be hard work from here on out, provided they weren't all slackers.

As she sat in the main hall, eating and drinking to her hearts content, a voice broke through the bright conversations already lighting up the room. Everyone turned to look, even Eva took a moment out of her ravenous eating to watch. Things were changed now that she was moving onto her regiment, it actually mattered who said what. Some of these cadets would be Scouts just like her - she wanted to be ready.

"How many people have died?" He asked nervously, "We're talking a fifth of the population! If that doesn't paint a picture for you I don't know what will. This is our life now. We can't beat them."

She wondered why such a dark conversation would start on a night of celebration. Who would choose to bring up the death of so many when Wall Maria was lost? She turned to see a small gathering of people on the far side, a few people caught up in the creeping dread of titans closing in on the two surviving Walls. No one liked to think about them, no one wanted to face how futile fighting the titans had been so far.

It was true that no one mission carried out against the titans had ever been successful. They lost every fight, but yet they kept getting back up and fighting again. She wanted to be part of that fight, some attempt to alleviate the crushing guilt she felt for Shiganshina and Wall Maria. She didn't know how much suffering she inflicted, how many families no longer existed or lost loved ones because of her. All she knew is that it happened and she wanted to fight to grasp some kind of redemption. If she died doing so, she knew she died for them. A debt paid.

These people did not have that drive. They had the hope that one day things would change, one day they could push back against the titans. It was a pipe dream so far, but those like Yaeger still believed in it.

Eva didn't know if it was possible or not, it wasn't her goal to make the impossible happen. It was her goal to save lives though suffering as penance for whatever horrors she committed.

"Yeah? So what?" Yaeger broke the tension. "We buckle? Take it all lying down?" His statement a clear challenge to prove him wrong. "Things have changed. Maybe not a hell of a lot, but enough. They aren't the mystery they were five years ago. There's still a long way to go, but we've made progress."

She listened intently, it sounded like he wanted to join the Scouts if he really believed what he was saying. "Every battle we lost taught us a lesson, gave us the tiniest inroad toward something like hope. You telling me it's better to cut our losses? Let all the death and destruction be meaningless? Just to ball up and accept it? Not on your life!" He took a deep, hard breath. "Humanity's future lies outside the Walls and I'm going to clear the way! I'm going to take back what is ours! I'll drive them out. And as long as one of us can say that, we're not done."

He realized the entire room was looking at him. He didn't know if they approved or not, but he didn't want to care. So he left the hall, wanting for the first time some relief away from the other cadets. His friends were quick to follow him out, the door slamming shut behind them.

Eva sighed, he was definitely joining the Scouts and one day, if he survived, he would be her comrade. As much as she didn't want to speak to anyone here, she knew that this group at least was going to become her teammates. Taking once last drink of water and a large bite of bread, Eva stood from her table and followed the group out of the hall.

Just like the first day of training, no one bothered her. They learned after a few weeks she was not keen on discussion with anyone, no matter who they were or how kind they were. Not even Krista could convince her to speak and she was the kindest soul the 104th ever knew.

She stepped out into the cold night, a slow but chill breeze hit her back as she descended the stairs. They hadn't gone far, just down a side street beside the celebration hall.

They were talking quietly as she approached and she caught only a part of it.

"Yeah. Well, mom's not here." Yaeger turned his head, his voice low.

"A lot of the people I used to care about aren't here, either." The girl beside him responded with a somber statement. It resonated with the others as they fell into a silence. Eva took a deep breath to her future teammates.

"Hey." Her voice struck them, each turning to see Eva standing a few feet beside them. Confused, but not responding, she gestured to them. "Mind if I join you?"

Yaeger blinked, stunned by her sudden company. "What, you're the cadet I asked for help once and you turned me down, the first day of training..." His face lowered, "Haven't spoken to you since. That was a long time ago." He was utterly confused, as were the other two. She didn't blame them for being cautious, it was smart. So she put them at ease.

She shrugged slightly, "Thought you were just born upside down. Turns out it was just faulty equipment. Can't win them all." The remark didn't go unappreciated. It was a stark contrast to her previous self over the years and the boy to Yaeger's right was all too happy to see it. "So, do you mind?"

"No, it's okay." The blonde kid welcomed her before his friend could answer. So Eva stepped down the stairs to lean against the wall just beside him, giving him a nod of appreciation. She did not really know their names, she may have heard them a few times during training but was never placed together with them and never interacted with anyone near them. She stayed with the average cadet and they fought to be in the top ten, their peer circles were entirely different.

Not that Eva really accepted any peers to begin with.

"I never got your names before, during training." Eva started, trying to break the ice with this trio of friends. Still quite surprised, it took them a moment to answer.

"I'm Armin. This is Eren and Mikasa." Eren looked a little disturbed by the openness, but chose not to pursue it. He figured Armin was right anyhow, being secretive was a bit unnecessary when speaking to a fellow cadet. Armin had a pleasant smile on his face, glad to see the reserved cadet joining them tonight. To him it was a welcome addition.

She greeted, "Eva Faust."

Eren was suspicious and had no issue showing it. "So what are you doing here?" Armin wanted to say something about how he was being a bit harsh on their fellow graduating cadet, but was stopped when Eva answered.

"With how loudly you proclaim it since day one I assume you're joining the Scouts. What about you two?" She nodded towards Armin and Mikasa, both shared a glance between them and Eren.

"We're all going, together." Armin spoke assuredly. His steady tone told her he was resolute, despite his lack of physical ability all through training.

Eva sighed, "Well, we're all going to become teammates one day... I'm joining the Scouts too."

"What, really?" Eren was a bit shocked, "But... why? You kinda of skipped a lot of training..." His voice trailed off as he pointed out her almost impressive laziness during training. It wasn't an insult or an attack on her, it was simply the truth.

Eva tucked some hair behind her ear. "I didn't care for training. I never wanted to go to the Military Police so outperforming the other cadets never mattered to me. The Scouts take everyone, regardless of their grades." She shrugged nonchalantly, "So what's the point of training to join a regiment when that regiment doesn't require good grades?"

Feeling a fire lit under him, Eren barked. "If you're going to the Scouts to fight titans, don't you want to know how to fight? If you skipped training than how can you expect to kill a titan?"

Eva shook her head, "Guess we'll find out." She brushed off the question, "I was in Shiganshina when the Colossal and Armored Titan destroyed the gates. I know you three are from Shiganshina. I figure we all have similar goals here."

"Right, Mina told me that." Armin leaned forward then smiled, "Maybe we'll all get to see our home again together in the Scouts."

"No maybe about it; we're going to take back our home." Eren was certainly enthusiastic. Eva just nodded in agreement, not quite sure what to tell him. At the very least his confidence would mean he wasn't terrified the minute he was pitted against a real titan. It was unlikely any cadet joining the Scouts would survive very long, they would have to not just be great soldiers, but the very best.

Eva just chose a passive approach, gave Eren a short nod of approval. He was pleased enough with that she agreed.


	4. Wild in Trost

Eva left Mina at HQ, she had to abandon the vanguard. With her only surviving teammate incapacitated Eva flew out of HQ on her own to rejoin the fight. There was no direction, no place to go but to hunt down the titans getting deeper into the city. There were still other squads out there still fighting, though she didn't know how many are left.

She avoided thinking about Eren and Armin, the only two she actually knew. The rest... she might not have known but felt horrible they died so quickly. It was sudden, brutal. They were reckless and got themselves killed. She couldn't help people racing into the skies without checking their surroundings. They died because they were inexperienced and practically handed themselves over to the titans.

It hurt to think they were gone, it hurt to think she would have to tell Mikasa they died. How would she react? Aside from shock, grief...? Would Mikasa blame her or would she recognize that Eren's nickname as a suicidal manic was well deserved?

She didn't want to think about it but it just kept crawling into her head. It so too fast, too much, she had no control-

Eva sighed, focusing on the titans she approached. Quickly she sliced into another titan's nape, bringing it down hard. She was quick to swing herself back into the sky, coming to stand on top of a church tower. From so high above the roofs she could see a few other soldiers soaring around. They were far away and she couldn't see them clearly enough to tell if they were other cadets or Garrison soldiers.

It didn't much matter, she needed to get out there all the same. Trying to reach another squad was her best bet. Though titans didn't much care about her if she did not provoke them, that didn't mean she wanted to take the easy way out. She needed to bring down as many as she could as fast as she could and find another team to join. They would be safer with her no matter their own skill.

She could fight better because she had no fear of dying. If she fell from the sky she would heal almost instantly. If a titan bit her in half, she would recover in minutes. If she was even swallowed she could still free herself. Every situation possible for her to die here in Trost could easily be handled. For them it would mean the end and if one goes down, they all follow.

If she learned anything from Eren's squad. The only reason Mina is alive is because Eva chose not to follow her squad any further. She liked Eren and Armin, she even liked the other cadets she knew briefly. The risk wasn't to Eva really, it was to them all. They would kill themselves no matter what she did, they rushed out like they never had a single day of training in the last three years.

It was foolish, they were foolish. It actually made Eva a bit mad thinking about their lives being ended so quickly just because they couldn't follow their training instead of acting on their emotions. She didn't want them to die so brutally after all Eren's big talk about seeing the outside world, about cutting down every titan he could find. He never got to fight a single one.

And Armin? He didn't deserve to be swallowed whole by a titan. He followed Eren to his death. Mikasa would be devastated. Who could blame her? She lost the remainder of her family and right now... She was in the elite squad, she wouldn't know until after the battle.

Eva just sighed. She had to join a squad and keep moving forward. There were others that still had a chance to survive. So long as she didn't get bitten apart in front of anyone than she could continue fighting. If she messed this up and ended up losing a limb or becoming severely injured than she couldn't return to the military. At most she could be a civilian inside the walls, but they would think her dead. How would she explain regaining an arm or a leg?

She couldn't really, there was no way to come back after that. So she still had to be careful.

She stepped off the ledge, swinging back down to the streets of Trost. A titan had its back turned to her just ahead, so she shot her ODM gear to the side, allowing her to swing around the corner without losing momentum. The sound of shredded flesh marked the death of that titan. It was easy to kill titans unaware of a soldier, they had very limited awareness of their surroundings.

Eva flew over a smaller titan, choosing not to engage that low to the ground. Coming back up would be too dangerous and the buildings blocking her view meant any other titan could walk up on her. She had to be cautious with every step.

Just ahead was a Garrison soldier in the hands of a titan, already being eaten. He must've come from somewhere and Eva suspected there was a squad somewhere nearby. She had to find someone, she had to make some worth of herself here. Trost had not suffered the loss of life that Shiganshina and Wall Maria did; this time they had a plan set up to evacuate the people.

Still, she wanted to make a difference somehow. Her penance for Shiganshina couldn't just be helping a few soldiers escape Trost, she had to do more. Families died and were torn apart by her, she couldn't just save a life. She needed to save everyone. One murder could not be washed away by saving ten lives. That one person was still slain by senseless violence. Though perhaps it would help her rest a little easier.

So she pushed harder and harder, cutting down another titan, severing the ankle of the next, slaying another one. No lives had been saved from her rampage, but it did make her feel better.

Every last titan she brought down made her think about herself in Shiganshina. When she heard a soldier screaming for their life, the bloodcurdling shrieks of someone knowing they were about to die in pain. That's what the people of Shiganshina looked like when she tore them apart, crushed them in her hands. They made those awful sounds, the screams that would echo in her head. It would never go away. Unlike titans, the blood of a human can stain even flesh.

Eva wanted to save everyone and considered every death a failure, another stain. Trost might not have experienced her wild titan as Shiganshina did, but the loss of life she carried all the same. A soldier was eaten, another fell to their death, another took their own life. Each one a life she chose to carry for the things she had done five years ago. Had she the control she knew she would never have attacked these people... That fact did nothing to change her feelings of guilt.

Another titan cut down by her blades. Her face reddened, dripping sweat mixed with titan blood. She fought hard, exhausting herself, yet she pressed on. The struggle burning her body is barely an echo of the pain her victims endured. So she kept pushing, kept fighting.

Until finally, her muscles began to shake and weaken. The last cut she made didn't go deep enough to kill the titan. It had been hours since she started fighting again, the sky was obscured with dark clouds. Her body wasn't really giving out, she was stronger than that. She was telling herself she could not physically go on because she didn't want to. She wanted to stop and breathe, to look around at the destruction being caused.

Not that it would help at all, neither her or anyone still in Trost would benefit from her observations. She just wanted to watch a moment and think to herself. It was getting more and more difficult not to break down.

Seeing Eren and Armin, Milieus, Nack, Mina... Eva didn't want to say she cared, she didn't want to say it to herself even. Regardless of her denial, she did care for them. She did care what happened... the shock of it hadn't settled in with her.

Despite being wild in Shiganshina, she had only memories of herself eating people. Never had she witnessed it from the other side with connections to the people being eaten and crushed. It hurt before to know she caused this pain, this loss. Now it was an agonizingly deep pain that spread through her body because she now understood the loss from personal experience. Instead of sympathy with them, she is now empathetic. Understanding mutually what it was like to watch a friend being eaten alive, hearing the screams of people she had been around for years.

The 104th cadets were in training for three years and though she interacted only when forced to, she still cared. Distance was the only thing keeping her together. It was the only shield she had from truly knowing the people she had hurt.

Looking at Eren, Armin, Mikasa... They suffered from the onslaught of Shiganshina and Wall Maria. She was looking at the grief she had caused. Guilt always stuck to the back of her mind, but around them... it was constantly stabbing her chest mercilessly and she knew she deserved it. She believed she deserved the pain it caused her, the restlessness.

Eva raised herself from the streets, landing hard on a roof nearby. Her density cracking the tiles below her feet. Her eyes drifted to them, blank and grey. She knew her weight, her strength, her speed... it was all thanks to being a titan. As a human would she really be this capable? If she was just human, born and raised, would she ever be able to keep up with the others?

Running on the rooftops always cracked the tiles, but for the others they remained intact. Maybe with a few scuffs, but definitely not shattered. She sheathed her blades, looking at her hands. She was always a bit strange and she hid it well, but it was impossible to be completely hidden.

She did not know why, but she had six fingers on each hand; that was abnormal apparently. She had no idea it was until she met these people, she had no memories of other people aside from those she ate. They always had five on each hand, no more. It didn't help anything she thought, only when she fought with her hands did it make a difference. The clawed hands of her natural titan form made the sixth finger extremely useful, allowing her to grab and hook onto anything with greater strength.

With the blades it really didn't change anything. No one ever said anything about her strange hands, perhaps it wasn't so strange as she thought. Maybe just rare?

As she inspected her hands she saw one of the defining parts of her secret she had to keep hidden. Her skin was beginning to burn away, all the energy she was expending to keep fighting was causing her body to heat up too quickly. Her fingers touched the side of her face, feeling the skin burnt away to feel the taut muscle of her jaw. She hissed through her teeth, trying to focus on regenerating the damage.

If anyone saw... she had no idea what would happen. Would they think she was injured? Dying? It didn't matter really, she was alone on this roof.

After a few seconds the skin under her clothes began to regenerate, radiating outwards to her hands, face, and down her legs. Most was hidden by her uniform, but it better to be safe. She ran her hands over her face, feeling nothing but smooth skin. Relieved, Eva moved on.

As she approached the ledge, she heard the telltale sounds of ODM gear firing off. In the distance she saw someone flying passed, another behind them. Eva had found someone alive, someone still fighting. Reinvigorated, Eva raced down the roof, each step shattering the tiles. She lifted herself from the roof, using the speed to throw herself over the rooftops separating her from the soldiers she saw.

Eva moved fast, pressing her ODM gear harder and harder until she could see them again. Pleased to be on their trail, Eva saw who she was following. Flying low was Jean and other fellow cadets burning through the city avoiding titans. She wanted to catch up to them, but she was so far behind. As she reached the rear of the group, they all began landing on a roof just ahead.

They didn't appear tired, there was no reason for them to stop as far as she saw. What was the objective here? Who was leading this group? Up ahead she saw Jean, a few others spread out, but no one looking particularly motivated to do much. She approached at least one person she recognized from their cadet days. It was hard to not know them.

"Reiner, Bertoldt." She caught their attention. The blond girl turned to her as well, but she never learned her name after hearing it the first few days. Eva almost winced at interrupting. "What's going on? Why has everyone stopped?"

The shock on Reiner's face was clear, followed quickly by Bertoldt. "Eva...?"

She raised a brow, confused by their reaction. Glancing to Bertoldt's expression and the blonde beside them, she couldn't decipher what prompted Reiner's response. "Reiner! What's going on?" Urgency in her tone snapped him out of it, but he didn't have time to answer.

Jean's voice surprised everyone. "Let's go! Make a break for HQ while they're distracted!" He jumped to the next roof, leading the group away from feeding titans on the streets below. Reiner gave Eva a quick nod before joining the rest as they ran across the rooftops, passing by titans on their way towards HQ. She had no idea what was happening here and she went along with it anyways.

Grunting, she jumped roof to roof, trailing behind the others. She was trying to watch what they were doing until she finally spotted something. The entire group chose to traverse the rooftops of Trost, they even dared to cross roofs close to titans... This way was far more dangerous than using their ODM gear and they all knew that. So there had to be something wrong... Eva gritted her teeth; they were all either out or low on gas.

That's why they were choosing to take the most dangerous route they could. HQ kept all the gear they needed to survive, yet they would not need to return unless... Unless the resupply soldiers were all dead. With so many titans around HQ they could be trapped inside if not all eaten already.

Everyone was in a bad position, if they lost the use of their ODM gear they would die. She still had some left, she had taken Mina back to HQ and resupplied while she was there. Because of that she had not yet needed to meet up with supply runners. So she never noticed they weren't there.

They used their ODM gear sparingly, jumping roof to roof, using their gas only to cover short distances. The amount of titans on these streets was getting harder to dodge, so many in such a condensed space. HQ was crawling, literally, with titans. They climbed up the sides, searched through the archways and windows. Titans were everywhere and now they were aware of the group approaching.

Eva pulled out her blades, racing as fast as she could ahead, slicing a titan's nape to clear the way for more cadets. Seeing her join the fight they were grateful, though unaware of when she joined their squad.

She was still too far behind to help the front line, she could only do what she could to the rear guard. Swiping around behind a titan, her blades clean through the tape, she dove down to the streets to launch herself up. Cables locked onto a bell tower and she rounded it, using the speed she picked up to cut through another titan. The path was getting a bit safer but only for a second.

More titans appeared, crushing her hopes of creating a path for them all. She could only do so much. Those three titans down certainly helped, but the upcoming six titans didn't really care about that.

Frustrated, Eva fought harder, tearing through what she could. Going for the kill wasted time she didn't have. All she could do was sever a hand, fingers, cut the tendons inside the elbow. Cadets were able to pass through, using the opportunity she granted.

It didn't last long, her help came to a rib crushing end. A massive hand grabbed her in mid air, one of her cables snapped under the pressure. Its hand squeezed and she felt two ribs snap in half, sending a bright and incredible pain through her body. She coughed up blood, hindering her cry of pain. One arm was trapped in its grip, the other still holding onto her blade free outside its palm.

Some cadets saw her and could not help, they had to press on. She didn't hold that against them, there were far more than one reason to not stop to help her. It wasn't a problem; the problem would be getting torn apart. She could survive this with either her titan size or by her own ingenuity.

Raising the blade up she knew she could sever the hand or fingers at this angle, so she had a different idea. She aimed the blade down and shoved it between her body and the titan's fingers. Using the leverage this position granted her, she pushed and pulled the blade to cut through the finger inch by inch. The titan brought its hand to its face, mouth agape.

With a final hard push, the blade cut through the remaining flesh and the finger fell, burning to the ground below. She was free. Eva pulled herself out of its hand, firing the one good cable she had left to lift her to freedom. Without the second cable aiming herself to HQ was more than a challenge.

She could see the broken windows above and knew that was the cadet's entrance and her best bet too. Only she had to come from below since her second cable was broken. She abused her trigger, gas from her ODM gear propelling her out of control into one of the remaining windows. With a resounding cry, she was thrown through the window, glass shredding through her bare skin. She had failed to protect herself properly, resulting in lacerations all across her and shards of glass embedding themselves into whatever they could.

The trajectory meant she flew across the room, slamming into the bookcases on the far side. Blood splattered everywhere, books knocked free of the shelves came slamming down onto her unresponsive body. She was tired, in searing pain, and in her position she was not allowed to heal. Regenerating was obviously out of the question - she would have to deal with the pain.

If she was being honest, she believed it was well deserved. Her self hatred always went too far rationally, though she could never bring herself to believe that. Right now though, she was simply worn out. Without regeneration her usual high endurance meant nothing. She was useless from here.

Hands rested on her, shaking her. "Hey! Hey! Are you alive?" The person rolled her over, recognizing her immediately. "E-Eva!" Jean gasped. He and everyone else was under the belief she had died, perished with Eren's squad like Armin had said. Yet here she was, covered in blood laying on the floor of HQ. She had survived, somehow, and managed to join the rest of the cadets.

Eva coughed again, spitting blood onto the wood floors. She pushed herself up, her arms shaking as she struggled. Jean grabbed her, helping her sit upright. "I'm alive... Completely fine." She gave him a grin meant to be reassuring. It failed miserably.

He shook his head, "What?" His voice strangled as he fought for words.

"Hit the deck!" People began to take cover, trying to get away from the walls. Eva looked up, but did not have the strength to stand. Instead of bolting, Jean braced himself with Eva.

The sound grew louder before a resounding crash, the wall behind them was broken through entirely. Dust, wooden shards, and broken stone bricks flew into the room. Once the dust had settled they saw the face of a titan smiling faintly before them. It stared directly at them as the other cadets began to run, fleeing from the titans trying to get inside.

Jean stood, staring right back at the two titans ready to devour them all. He didn't move, he didn't try to attack, he stood there horrified at the overpowering force they faced. The titans were smiling creating a sense of incredible dread that something could take enjoyment out of destroying others. Of course, she knew they felt no joy, but it didn't change how disturbing it was.

Eva wouldn't let Jean get eaten here, especially not to shock. While he was distracted and the others ran away, she allowed only a second to heal. It wouldn't solve her problems, but it did stitch together her injured leg enough to get her to stand up. The rest could be done with the wounds.

She grabbed onto the shoulder of Jean's jacket, pulling it to snap him back to reality so he could run. So he could realize he should be running anyways. Right as she started pulling there was another loud crack. "What!" Jean pulled forward.

The two titans were knocked away from the hole in the wall. Eva watched as the titan responsible landed back on the street outside, not even glancing their way. It let out a bellowing roar, preparing another strike to the titans around it. She was astounded, standing with Jean. There was nothing she could conceive that would explain why this titan was attacking others...

Unless it was like her? She didn't know who was, she didn't know if anyone was. Right now this titan was fighting others and she couldn't make sense of it. Was it wild and simply... broken? Or was it aware like her and knew exactly what it was doing.

"What the..." Jean swallowed hard. He didn't believe what he was looking at. There was nothing in training about a titan attacking other titans. No one knew of such a thing as far as they knew.

As the initial shock and awe wore off, another window was shattered, revealing Mikasa, Connie, and Armin. They had arrived at HQ finally, seemingly unharmed. Their plan had worked, the rampaging titan was protecting them whether it knew it or not.

"Mikasa, you're...!" Jean shuddered, amazed that this group had survived. Mikasa looked up to see Jean standing there, Eva holding on to his jacket behind him. Her expression changed for just a moment as she spotted Eva.

"Wow, close one! I was running on fumes." Connie knocked his knuckle against the empty canister, the empty echo told them he wasn't exaggerating. "We made it here though, crazy, but we did!"

Disregarding Connie, Jean approached Mikasa. "You... Am I dreaming this, or what?" She stood up, not showing him any emotional response to his emotional greeting. Jean was smitten with Mikasa, it wasn't hard to tell.

"You're a goddamn genius! From now on, as far as I'm concerned, your word is law!" Connie patted Armin on the back, hard. The blonde boy grunted at the force of it. Connie jumped up, "Check it out! We found an abnormal that's got a bone to pick with its own kind. The best part? He couldn't care less about us! That's right, you heard me. This bid beautiful SOB's our ticket out of here!"

"You mean like fighting fire with fire?" Another cadet asked, just as stunned.

Jean scoffed, "Listen to yourself, a titan's not going to help us! You're out of your mind if you think this can work!"

"It is working." Mikasa interrupted coolly. "For whatever reason he's rampaging against them. Stand back and let him do it. Trust me, you'll see. Either way... What choice do we have? Right now that thing is our best chance at survival."

Jean was incredulous, but Mikasa was right. Even if they wanted to do something about it, they couldn't. If it really was out there killing titans than it was best to leave it alone and let it do the work for them. For now, they needed to resupply and climb the Wall. Their goal was clear, but the method wasn't just yet.

Before they had a chance to move on, Eva finally broke her focus from the rampaging titan to see who had joined them. She had heard Mikasa and Connie, but now standing was another familiar face. Eva's eyes were wide with shock, her jaw slack as she had to take deliberate breaths. She didn't know how to express her shock, Armin was less than a second from being swallowed by a titan... How was he here? How did he survive? He wasn't even- Eva shook her head and rushed towards him.

She could see the shock on his face mirrored her own. Just the same, he didn't know how to react. Eva was beyond relieved, though she knew Armin suffered a greater loss. Still, she wanted to be happy to find him alive, no matter how selfish that might seem.

Her physical injuries limited her movement and she didn't care in the slightest. "Armin!"

"Eva?!" They were all caught off guard. She didn't really know why and she didn't much care. As she stood in front of Armin, her labored breaths, the blood covering her body. She was alive, but severely wounded.

Tears brimmed Armin's eyes as he rushed forward, arms holding onto her tightly. She was taller than him, so he could only reach around her torso. He could hear her heartbeat, such a life affirming sound told him he wasn't imagining her standing before him. She groaned, a pained hiss escaped her mouth as she adjusted to Armin's grip. She wrapped her arms around him in return, thankful to see him alive.

But confused most of all. "Armin...?"

"Come on, we need to get down below. We can't stay up here any longer." Mikasa directed the group. They needed to get down below before more titans came to the hole in the wall. They also needed to resupply quickly so they had a shot of escaping Trost. The team agreed and followed Mikasa further into HQ. It was inhabited mostly by the 104th cadets now, everyone else had the time and gas to retreat.

As they moved, Eva was found to be lacking. She could stand and walk somewhat, but as she fell behind she leaned against a wall for support. Her blood smearing on the wallpaper as she forced herself to keep moving. The struggle did not go unnoticed, "Eva!"

Jean approached her side, bringing her left arm across his shoulders to support her weight. She gritted her teeth, but was able to move with the group. Her usefulness without regenerating was below average. She was trying to decide between healing herself to continue fighting or letting them fight for themselves. This was a means to an end, the idea was to get out of Trost not to continue fighting.

Eva chose to sit this one out, it was pointless to fight with them. They wouldn't die resupplying surely.

As they entered the lift room, Jean brought her to sit against the wall. She was appreciative, resting her back against something sturdy. "Eh, we need to get you patched up. I don't know who has the most medical training here though..." Jean sighed, "If only Krista were here."

"I'll do it." Armin came to her aid, "I know a few things about field medicine. I can help." Agreeing, Jean left the two alone. It also gave them a chance to catch up. It wasn't only Armin who had that moment, Mikasa joined them as well.

Eva leaned forward, trying to remove her jacket with her limited range of movement. Armin grabbed a sleeve and pulled it off, setting the blood stained jacket to the side. "Eva... what happened to you?" Armin questioned, already having the emergency medical kit ready. He knew he would need it and Eva was more grateful for his observance. She just wanted to feel better at this point, it was getting harder not to regenerate.

Mikasa kneeled beside them, listening in and ready to help their friend.

"I left the squad when I saw everyone get caught." She admitted, "Thomas, then... Eren. Milieus and Nack... I was able to reach Mina, brought her here to HQ. She was hurt and I left her in the infirmary. I don't know where she is now, I'm sure she's around. Then I resupplied, went back out to fight. After a while I found Jean and the others on their way here and joined up. I tried to cut a path, there were just too many to take down at once; I ended up getting caught by a titan."

Armin unbuckled the front of her ODM gear torso belts. Then he paused, looking down at her side. "Can you?" He hinted to the tucked in shirt and she obliged by pulling it out, unbuttoning the shirt from the bottom almost to the top. It didn't need to come off entirely, just enough to reveal the wound. Part of it anyways. It went down her leg, but she was a bit unwilling to undress entirely. She wouldn't die from this, so being indecent in front of her friends was something she'd rather not do unless her life was really threatened.

He opened the kit and started pulling out the needed materials.

"I didn't know you survived. I thought you..." Armin hesitated a moment, too many memories flashing around. "Eren saved me, as that titan nearly- I thought I was the only one."

"Aside from Mina, I figured all of you were dead too. I had no idea. I had to move, I couldn't stay." Eva looked at Armin, he was trying to keep himself focused on healing her. "I'm sorry, Armin. I shouldn't have left you; I should've-"

"No. You didn't do anything wrong." Armin stopped her, trying hard not to break down as he did before. He wouldn't dig further into the situation they both faced, he just wanted to be thankful some of them survived.

He brought something to her side, she realized very quickly it was something to sterilize the wound. It burned the second it touched her skin. It was simultaneously ice cold and searing hot, stinging into her wound and beyond. She was unprepared for the sudden bright hot pain and gasped loudly causing Armin to pull back. "Sorry, it's going to hurt."

Eva began to wonder if regenerating and being caught was worth avoiding this.

"Go on then, let's get it over with." She sighed, her body tense as she anticipated the stinging once more. It was easier to handle this time, but no less painful. She did her best not to struggle out of the way. Armin was understanding and tried to move as quick as possible.

Once he was done with that, he could only bandage the wound. He wrapped it around her torso with Mikasa's help, still seeing some blood staining the new gauze. He didn't like it, but this would hold until they could get out of here. Which was to say... soon, they hoped. Eva grew tired, a strange feeling to be so tired and yet too pained to sleep. The relief from the area Armin treated was grand though, definitely a relief.

As she laid back, thoroughly wrapped in gauze, Armin and Mikasa left her to plan their attack. Eva just needed time to recuperate. She was watching them from the wall and wanted desperately to heal and join them, but the steam from her regeneration would be too visible. The were loading guns, talking about a plan to get into the supply room. Something had to work, something they could do to escape.

She knew what they planned and she knew she wanted to be a part of it. Looking to the side, she saw rifles laid out. All loaded and ready to go. They had been preparing for the last hour. It was enough time for her to catch her breath. Eva pushed herself to her feet, grabbed a rifle and hoisted it up. Once she was sure she could hold it, she headed to the lift.

She was walking better, felt like she could hold herself steady. Enough to join this fight at the very least.

Eva stood in front of the lift, watching people board and line up around the edges. She stepped onto the lift, finding her own place in the front. Being able to kneel and rest her rifle against the ledge would make her life easier. Though she was certain she could make it on her own if need be.

Once the lift edge was closed, she steeled herself. Mimicking the position of the other sides. She kept in place, waiting for the right moment. Her gun was already loaded, thanks to another soldier, and she was ready to fire whenever the order was given. Once the lift began moving, it only took a moment for Armin to realize she was on board. She knew he would object and she did it anyways. It was too late now anyways.

"Eva-" He whispered though there was nothing he could do. The lift was lowered to the supply room and inside were a collection of titans, each one shorter than the height of the lift. Thankfully.

She aimed down the sight of her rifle, every soldier ready. "Okay now, nice and easy..." Marco was as calm as everyone else. Completely panicked but keeping it all inside. They were all completely quiet, just watching the titans as they wandered around.

It took a minute for the titans to begin noticing them on the lift. The first one turned to look at them, causing a shockwave of terror through the soldiers. "Don't lose your cool! Fire only when they're all within range!"

Their heavy footsteps shook the soldiers, but they did not falter. Each one approached, no quick movements. This would be an easy target so long as everyone stuck to the plan. Eva regulated her breathing as best as she could, staring down a titan barely a few feet from the lift.

"Almost..."

She exhaled and held her breath. Some strange sense of familiarity hit her and she knew exactly how to handle her weapon. She aimed straight for the pupil of the nearing titan, her aim perfect.

"Fire!"

The room erupted with light, the guns fired all at once and each one hit their target. The titans were stunned, blinded by the buckshot. The soldiers on the lift had done their job, now it was up to those hiding in the rafters. They stepped back from the ledge, watching their trusted comrades leap from the wooden beams above and slice into the titans.

One fell, then two and three. Eva watched the forth go limp and the fifth right after. It looked like the plan had worked, until a titan paused and turned around to face their attacker. Eva stood up, leaning against the ledge as she saw the titan lunge at Sasha. It hit the ground as she rolled out of the way. Panic filled the room as the titans began to attack their friends.

Instantly, Mikasa was on one of the titans. She was swift, her blades never failed. The titan went down easily under her incredible strength and Sasha praised the girl as she stepped down from the titan.

The other was handled by that same blonde woman she saw before.

The task was done, the supply room was all theirs. "They're all dead! Start loading up supplies!"

"It worked!" The soldiers cheered, celebrating their perseverance. It was a moment to be proud of themselves, impressed with their own bravery and ability. It seemed like everyone agreed. There was so much suffering today, so much grief; they deserved this time to celebrate their own abilities. They were only cadets and they were able to clear the supply room, no part of training taught them this.

Then Marco fainted and they had to hold him up, a nervous laugh coming from the lift.

They had survived, all of them, by their own wits and strength. Eva was glad to be there to see it.


	5. Bond

Eva had left to climb the walls with the others, aided by other cadets ready to assist their injured comrade. She had not seen Armin or Mikasa since they left HQ. A lot had happened from HQ to the wall, mostly dodging through the surviving titans in Trost. But they made it safely, the remaining cadets had arrived within the safety of Wall Rose. Unbridled relief washed over them, most fell to their knees and cried, others just wanted to get inside as fast as possible.

Garrison soldiers helped them move forward, got the cadets on lifts and lowered them to the ground. Emergency infirmaries were everywhere as well as collections of rations for the exhausted soldiers.

Unsurprisingly, Eva was rushed to the infirmary closest to them. She was given all the medical attention she could ever want. With meds to ward off the pain, stitches, bandages, antibiotics. Nothing was spared getting her back in fighting shape; the military branches took their fallen soldiers seriously. Eva was thankful, though she did know the supplies were unnecessary.

It didn't take long before she was allowed to get up again, but only with a crutch. The nurses walked her out like a prisoner just to make sure she would use it. Eva caved into their demands, they truly cared about her health, she didn't want to upset them.

She had hoped someone would've visited her, at least at some point. Then she realized the only people who knew her were Eren, Armin, and Mikasa... She hadn't seen Armin and Mikasa since HQ, there was no telling where they were right now.

Without the enclosed feeling of the cadet training grounds or the company of Armin, Mikasa and... Eva sighed, her eyes raising to see the Wall towering above her. They were likely somewhere grieving, saying goodbye to Eren in their own way.

Whatever that meant, it left her here to hope they were alright and to find food. Life went on, no matter the losses they suffered or the horrors they witnessed. They needed to eat and move forward.

Eva leaned on her crutch, limping down the street slowly. Too many people so condensed it was hard to move around. Without the nurses in sight, she figured it wouldn't harm anyone if she stopped using it. She stopped using the crutch and carried it in her hand. Still she was in pain, unable to regenerate. The limp was noticeable, her winces of pain also quite clear. She wasn't good at hiding them. Though the wound would've likely bedridden a human soldier, Eva was lucky she didn't require that rest and recovery phase.

At times her weakened leg would give somewhat, causing her to stumble for just a moment. It wasn't bad, she never fell down. It just took a bit more effort to walk around. The crutch only agitated her, she was far too stubborn to actually use it without the nurses around.

When she finally found a woman handing out bowls of stew, Eva waited to get her own bowl. The woman was kind, seeing the injured soldier before her, she gave a generous amount. "Get your rest, soldier. We're all glad you came home to us!" She offered this sweet, yet sad smile. It was sympathy as she tried to cheer up the cadets. Eva liked this woman, she was good.

As Eva held the bowl and spoon in one hand, she fought to keep herself steady. All she wanted was to heal, stand up, and walk like normal. This whole situation frustrated her to no end. She started to trip again, her leg bending when she didn't want it to. Part of the stew spilled onto the ground and Eva cursed to herself. There went half her food.

She might not need to eat like everyone else, but she did need energy to push on. Eating kept the body alive, all it did for Eva was help her keep her strength up. After she burned so much energy at Trost fighting titans, she needed something to fill her aching stomach. She was always so hungry after she did hard work, even during training. At the very first second of physical exertion her body began to heat up and her need for sustenance would grow. Hunger was the term for surviving, living. To eat to satisfy that ache, to keep themselves alive and healthy.

Eva didn't eat for that, she ate to keep moving faster. The more the ate, the faster and stronger she was. There were limitations, but every bit helped. Right now she wanted to eat so she could work through the pain and start preparing for what comes next. Food would rapidly increase her recovery, even without regeneration.

Her physical struggles frustrated her and did not go unnoticed. There was always one person in the cadets that wanted to help everyone. The only person she had never gotten through to was Eva. She would never let the smaller girl help her out with anything, always turning away without a word. Now she saw her chance to help Eva.

"Hey!" Footsteps rushed up to her, the clanking sounds of ODM gear rattling. "Hold on, let me help."

Eva saw Krista's hands take her bowl from her, holding it steady in two hands. Her first instinct was to deny the offer for help and go on her way. That same lone wolf attitude she had given their entire three years in training together. Rejecting the others for her own sake.

Looking at Krista's eyes, her sorrowful look. She did smile softly to Eva, just the same as the lady handing out stew to the soldiers. There was pain behind that smile, but they both put on a happy face just to make the suffering soldiers feel better. A moment of respite to not think about all the things they just saw in Trost. The hopeless feeling of death and destruction.

All through training Eva had turned this girl down, utterly rejected anything she offered without a second thought. Distance was safe and she remained impersonal with everyone. No one knew her well enough to even know she was injured, at least, not well enough to visit. It wasn't malicious or hurtful in anyway, the fault wasn't on them.

It was on Eva and she knew that. She wanted to be wanted, to be able to join the team... It was a shame it took her three years to get comfortable enough to even consider the idea.

So, to Krista's surprise, Eva accepted. She righted herself, letting her take the bowl from her hands before hurrying back to the woman serving the stew. Eva leaned on the crutch somewhat, watching the blue eyed girl thank the woman and return to Eva with a full bowl of piping hot stew.

"Here, come sit down." Krista lead Eva to a few wooden tables, setting the bowl down at a table below a cloth awning. She helped Eva out anyway she could, even took the crutch from her when she sat down, resting it against the nearby wall. Eva cautiously accepted her assistance, it was so strange being doted on.

Taking the spoon in her hand, she finally began to eat. The warmth and filling soup did wonders to her battered and exhausted body. She was instantly beginning to feel better. No regenerating. She had to remind herself, it was hard not to.

There were a few cadets around her, but less she actually knew. Jean, Krista, Ymir, Reiner, Bertoldt. Two others she had seen around, but never formally met. Eva watched them, especially focusing on the strange look on Jean's face. It was strange, different.

"What happened to you?" She heard the question and slowly turned to see Krista's always concerned expression.

Eva didn't care to get too in depth, the injury was minor compared to everything else going on. "I got grabbed by a titan. Broke through a window, got cut up by the glass." Her voice was low, unsure. Speaking to them wasn't easy. Ymir didn't look too interested in anything Eva had to say, much less how she was injured. Mostly she was there because Krista wanted to be.

Changing the subject, Eva pointed to Jean. "What happened to him?"

Ymir just crossed her arms, rolling her eyes. "We've asked him and he won't tell us. Something about a gag order and that's got something to do with why Mikasa and Armin aren't here." She was annoyed that Jean wasn't talking, that people were missing and no one would explain why. Or perhaps she was just annoyed because Ymir always seemed annoyed at something or someone.

Alarmed by that response, Eva abandoned her stew and turned around to face Jean. Her piercing gaze got to Jean instantly. "Jean. Where's Armin and Mikasa?" He was nervous about something, but resolved to not answer. The other cadets around him were also just as disturbed, so she turned to them instead. "Reiner, Bertoldt?"

Again, they stayed silent. Eva returned to the others at the table. "What happened to everyone? I saw a lot of cadets at HQ, did they even make it back?"

"Yes, a lot did. Me and Ymir had already climbed the Wall before we ran out of gas. I'm sorry, we should've run supplies." Krista glanced down, "If we knew what was going on, we would've done whatever we could to help."

"We're lucky we got out when we did. I'm not about to die running gas to the vanguard because a few cadets got too cocky and ended up titan chow." Ymir put a hand on her hip. She was being dismissive about the lost soldiers and Eva really couldn't care less.

So she took another bite of her stew and tried to think back to HQ, back to the last time she saw Mikasa and Armin. It wasn't so long ago that her memory was clouded, it was so fast. The moment they stepped outside the cadets began evacuating Trost as quickly as they possibly could, burning gas straight through Trost's streets and up Wall Rose. They were relived to survive, horrified to know those that didn't.

As she ate, strong vibrations shook the table; a loud crack of electricity was unmistakable. Followed by an earth shattering explosion from cannon fire. Everyone jumped up, all the cadets turned to see the cloud of smoke, dust, and... steam rising into the sky from inside the Wall. No more than a few blocks away from where they stood. Panic enveloped them all, civilians still in the area began to flee.

Eva hurried along with the others as fast as she could, the cadets all staring into the sky.

The first to race off into the unknown was Reiner, leading the charge and quickly followed by three more. She wanted to go with them, but her ODM gear was removed in the infirmary. She had no way to pursue them, no way to find out what the hell was going on.

People began talking, pure conjecture born from fear and fresh trauma.

She could do nothing but wait.

Eva took a deep breath and calmed herself down. Too much was happening at once, too much that couldn't be helped no matter what they did. She just had to deal with it for now. They all had to wait, but there were no more sounds of cannon fire or the stomping of a titan. If they were inside Wall Rose... everyone would know by now. This panic was something else entirely.

She would just have to see what it was when Jean and the others returned. Her eyes rested on other cadets, people she didn't really know very well. People she began to wonder if she should get to know. Things were changing rapidly, it was time to forge bonds not separate herself further.

Returning to the table with a few cadets still there, tensed with the fear of a titan inside the Wall. Eva studied Krista's expression as she thought about what to say. It was hard... she already fought with herself just to talk to Eren, Mikasa, and Armin. But willingly holding a conversation with another stranger...?

Eva gave up. She had physical strength, agility, and adaptability to keep herself alive. The only thing she didn't learn in the last five years was how to talk to another person. How to tell them that she appreciated their help and wanted to engage with them more, to get to know them. Did she want to get to know anyone here, Krista included? She wasn't sure...

She just knew the longer she was around these people the more she realized she didn't want to be alone anymore.

For now she kept her mouth shut and finished her stew. It gave her the push she needed to move forward. All that held her back now was this injury from Trost... She couldn't recover, she could only hope that if she needed to they would be so detached from her current state that they wouldn't notice her.

That is until they were being rounded up by the Garrison to stand directly in front of the Wall Rose to Trost gate. Perhaps not the safest place to be considering what happened to the Wall Maria gate. Still, they all stood in a crowd waiting to hear what the Garrison commander had to say. All Eva knew was that she stood, leaning over, listening to whispers that tore through the crowd like fire.

They talked about a recovery mission in Trost, something about returning to block the broken Trost gate. She was unaware there was a way to do so. If there had been during Shiganshina than they would've used it; unless this plan was created due to that massacre? Or something else entirely.

Eva spotted people beginning to outright panic, publicly in front of their superiors. Some cried, shook violently, crouched down, holding their heads... It was crippling fear from the initial attack. There was no one who could possibly blame them for this fear, so many had died and a good deal of these soldiers were cadets. Not even trained in their chosen regiment.

She felt sorry for them, but they couldn't retreat. Desertion was... frowned upon, to say the least.

Eva had caught the attention of Krista, the girl seemed so happy Eva even acknowledged her earlier. Years of ignoring her made that one moment of reaction monumental. With Eva's injured state, Krista felt the need to interrupt.

"You should go back to the nurses, let them take care of you." Krista insisted, her eyes wide and worried. She held her hands clasped together in front of her, almost like this sweet begging for Eva to listen to her. "Please, you shouldn't go out there like this. You'll die." It was pleading; pleading for Eva's life as she believed. Though the taller woman would hear nothing of it.

Eva's critical stare unnerved Krista. It was the usual look the older cadet had given everyone through training. Intimidating, towering; Eva was an adult woman that towered over the young cadets. It was hard to ignore that look she would give them, how cold and harsh it felt being on the receiving end. The woman's eyes were sharp, steel blue, and an expression that every single word you could say to her would only make her angrier.

Of course, Eva was not upset with Krista in the slightest. This expression was simply her face and meant no ill will towards the sweet girl that only wanted to help everyone around her.

Ymir was never far from her, always watching the girl do what she did best. Help people.

"I'll be fine." Her short answer suggested she would not listen to what Krista had to say at all. Eva knew her injuries would not hold her back at all, but no one else did. From the outside, Eva looked like a mess. A wounded soldier on the verge of falling over. Her early years of adjusting to ODM gear in Shiganshina taught her a lot, but not how to refrain from injury. Without the fear of permanent harm or death, Eva never focused on self preservation.

The panic spread through the crowd like wildfire, burning hot and scaring other soldiers. People began to turn around, superiors began threatening them for desertion, which incited more panic. It would soon turn into a stampede of people trying to escape certain death. If they were not careful, a lot more could go wrong.

It was at this critical moment when the Garrison Regiment Commander called from atop the Wall.

"Attention!"

Every single soldier stopped dead in their tracks. While they were terrified, hearing the Commander's voice definitely struck them deeply. "I shall now explain the Trost Recovery Operation." A few people gasped, shaking their heads. The rumor was true, there was a recovery mission. "Our primary objective is to reseal the hole."

Eva frowned, How do they intend to do that? Other soldiers agreed, murmuring to each other about the impossibility of it all.

"As for how the task will be done, allow me to introduce someone. This is cadet Eren Yaeger." Even Eva was shocked when the familiar cadet approached the Commander's side and saluted. What is he-?

Beside Krista, Connie paled. "Eren?!" Everyone shared his shock, staring wide eyed at their friend. He was a part of this plan, there was something more going on here.

"This young man is the successful product of cutting-edge research. Cadet Yaeger possesses the ability to manifest himself as a titan." Eva instantly froze, her body aching it was so tense.

... Eren can... Her mind went insane with a thousand questions at once. He can become a titan too? So... was that him, in Trost? The one killing titans...? Eva's jaw clenched, hands grasped into tight fists. She had no idea what she was, no idea what it meant. No one else said a single thing about this being possible. All three years in training and not once had anyone said turning into a titan was possible; not even a tiny hint.

So now, all of a sudden, today of all days... Someone can become a titan. Someone else that is. Did they understand it all along? Was this known, but perhaps under wraps for an unseen reason?

"Hey, I didn't understand what the Commander said, but it's not because I'm stupid, right?" Connie looked to Ymir for answers. She ignored him for the most part, just telling him to be quiet.

"Having assumed titan form, Cadet Yaeger will hoist that immense boulder on his back and seal the hole with it. Your duties are to protect him from other titans!" The Commander paused, listening to the crowd of soldiers below.

The silence only lasted a moment, but every second felt like hours. Fear was already running rampant; now it was pure terror. Soldiers began to retreat.

Dozens turned tail, brushing passed others in a hurry. Eva watched so many abandon this mission, abandon their duties as a soldier. They were the only people standing between millions of people and the wild titans just outside that gate.

So many with tears down their faces, dark shadows over their eyes. Too scared, too pained. It was hard to see people shaken to the core.

Then came the threats of death. Garrison soldiers threatened the deserters. "Traitors! I'll kill you where you stand!" Swords were drawn, aimed at those too scared to fight again. More swords could be heard being unsheathed, ready to execute deserters.

People started to cry out in retaliation. The crowd was devolving fast.

"Anyone wishing to leave will be given by my orders not to be charged with treason!" The Commander was full of surprises today. "Those who have seen a titan firsthand will not be expected to relive it again. Anyone that knows the horrors of a titan, leave us! Additionally, whoever knows the horror of a titan, but wants their own family to experience the same horror, leave us!"

Eva liked this Commander. He didn't play fair, he knew how to turn a crowd from a panicked mob to a docile unit.

"I want to tell you a story that happened four years ago. Namely, the operation to retake Wall Maria. I'm sure all of you know this already." Eva... did not. Four years ago she was outside Wall Rose, living in the titan controlled lands beyond human reach. "Officially, we labelled it reconnaissance. In fact, it was little more than an exercise in population control. We let ourselves believe a lie because the deaths of our fellow human beings allowed us to survive."

She wondered what any of that really meant. Though she understood some things about human life, she truly didn't understand a lot. Population control wasn't something she knew was an issue.

"The guilt is ours. We have a debt to pay back to humanity. The citizens of Wall Maria survived due to many casualties. But what about this time?" His words turned sharper, more pointed towards the soldiers below him. "If Wall Rose succumbs, the repercussions will be immeasurable. The resources within Wall Sina cannot support half of those who live there now. Humanity will be wiped out not by the titans, but through killing each other. We can't kill each other at this wall."

The rally was proving successful. Cadets and Garrison soldiers around her all began to feel the Commander's energy. He certainly had a way with his soldiers.

"If we must die, let us die here in battle!"

People were still horrified, but they had calmed down. It was time to begin and everyone was involved.

Eva had picked up her ODM gear, strapping herself back in. It hurt certainly, but the pain was dulled thanks to the medicine they had given her. Not much, just enough.

She pulled her jacket back on, straightening it out. Running her fingers through her hair, pulling it up to keep it out of the ODM gear just in case. As protocol, she inspected the blades, canisters, and cables to ensure everything was working as intended. She might not be great at fighting right now, it didn't mean she was entirely useless either.

The plan she was informed of involved three separate groups. One elite squad escorting Eren, multiple soldiers hanging off the Wall Rose to keep titans there, and a few squads on the ground attracting titans to the grouped soldiers on Wall Rose. It was effectively an attempt to control the path of the titans, leading them away from Eren so he could do what needed to be done.

With more titans pouring in through the open gate there was only so much anyone could do. Eventually, titans would begin to pick up on Eren's location and head to him. No matter what anyone did.

Eva wasn't too worried though, she could handle rogue titans wandering the streets. She just couldn't fight so aggressively anymore; she needed time. Her strength on her right side was also heavily in question as she was unable to apply much pressure when gripping her triggers. It would still work, just not as well. This meant when she attacked a titan trying to cut deep enough into the nape, she may be unable to do so.

With other soldiers around her, it may be best to stick to severing hands, cutting tendons in the legs, and blinding them. That did not require nearly as much strength and she would still remain useful on the field.

They were all taking lifts to the top of Wall Rose, so she waited her turn. Small groups on each one, slowly raised and lowered back down. It took some time; they were bringing up all cadets and Garrison soldiers they possibly could. To attract and keep so many titans on this side of the Wall, they needed a group so large no titan that could see them could ignore it.

Once her chance came, she was placed on a lift with six others, including a familiar cadet. Jean was shoulder to shoulder with her, waiting on the lift like everyone else. It took him a moment to realize the woman beside him was Eva. His eyes glanced over her, looking for the wounds he had just seen merely hours ago. They were significant and he had serious doubts she was physically prepared to fight.

However, he did not speak up on the lift. Instead, when they finally reached the top, Jean grabbed her arm. The contact was wholly unwelcome and stunned her just long enough for Jean to remove her from the soldiers heading towards the meeting point.

Behind a few crates, Jean stopped with Eva in tow. His critical expression conveyed his concern clearly.

"What do you think you're doing?" His tone stern, but he spoke quietly. No need to get anyone else involved, at least, not yet.

Eva pointed to the rest of the soldiers heading to the far side of the Wall. "Following orders."

Jean scoffed, "You were barely able to stand even with a crutch. You expect to be of any use up here? If you try to fight, you'll die." His voice began to raise as he considered Eva's likely death.

He didn't want to, it wasn't as if he liked thinking about his comrades dying in Trost. Jean was never one to stick his neck out for anyone... before today that is. Now he heard the screams of cadets he knew for the last three years, he watched Garrison soldiers be torn apart... The streets littered in blood and body parts. A horrific sight, a nightmare of a memory.

Here stood Eva, another cadet of the 104th. He knew her... somewhat. Mostly by reputation, but all the rep she had gotten over the years was created by other cadets. As he thought more about this loner cadet, he realized he had never spoken more than a sentence to her in the last three years. She never made any efforts to interact with anyone unless forced to do so during training.

No matter how little he knew this soldier, he didn't want her running blindly to her death. Another brave fool like Eren, he figured.

"No, no. You're not going anywhere. You're going right back down to the infirmary and staying there. We can handle this." Jean put his foot down. As if reprimanding a toddler throwing a tantrum. He was certain that if he didn't intervene, Eva would be another corpse on the streets and he would have to listen to her die; another cadet dead before they got to join their Regiment.

Eva, completely unaffected by Jean's demands, just stared at him blankly. "Can you really though." Her voice was smooth, not a single sign of defiance. She didn't need it, her confidence was radiating. Jean swallowed, seeing the unimpressed gaze weighing him down. "This is a shot in the dark and you need every soldier you can get. Able bodied or not. I'm still strong, so I'm going to help."

She pushed passed him, heading straight to the gathered soldiers. Jean gritted his teeth and followed her. He wasn't going to get her to stay on his own.

She saw a few soldiers repelling off the edge of the Wall to keep the titan's attention down below. They were doing everything they could to get titans to gather, clawing mindlessly at the Wall. Eva peered over the edge, curious.

Was that what I looked like? She sneered. They looked pathetic to her yet she empathized with them. She knew what it was like, she remembered that suffering. It made her feel angry and... scared. She stepped back from the ledge and checked over her ODM gear again, prepared to dive into Trost once more.

Teams had been put together, groups of cadets and Garrison Soldiers ready to fight.

Eva was not part of those teams, instead she repelled down the Wall with the other soldiers. The squads had not yet moved out and more were being formed every few minutes. They were attempted to lure all the titans still deeper in the city towards the Wall. Eventually, she would be back in Trost fighting the same fight. Only this time, they were a bit more prepared.

Her boots skidded down the Wall, dropping small rocks and dust into the air. Hanging just above the reach of the tallest titans, Eva waited for her turn to come.

The rumbling crash of titan's reaching out, slamming their palms to the Wall. It vibrated through the stone, through their boots. Soldiers on the Wall were scared, even though they knew they were safe. As long as they stayed there, the titans couldn't get them. Gnashing jaws so close they could feel their breath. It wasn't pleasant. Everyone was riding on Eren's ability to complete this mission.

Eva looked out over the city. Eren was somewhere on the Wall running all the way down to the opposite side. Could he even lift the boulder? Would it matter? Eva's brow furrowed. So much could go wrong, so many people could die for this outrageous strategy they cooked up.

"Eva!" Her head snapped to the side. There, just a few feet away was Armin. "What are you doing here?" His concern etched across his face. A lot of the cadets knew she had been injured, it was hard to ignore the soldier that broke through a window staining the entire area in her own blood. It was a bit graphic. She winced, Not my best move.

Looking to the titans and back to Armin, she pulled back and swung over towards him. She adjusted her cables, keeping her just below and to the side. "Why are you here?"

Dodging a question like that wouldn't work on Armin. He paused a moment, clearly nervous with sweat dripping down his forehead. "Eva, you shouldn't be here. You're hurt, you can't-"

"I am here, I will stay here, and I will fight." Her expression confident, pointed. Armin wasn't good with confrontation, it just wasn't in his nature. Eva was always so self assured. Just her company felt demanding and that wasn't a good thing. It put people on edge, it created tension that shouldn't be between comrades. It made Armin feel uncomfortable about telling Eva no.

Though through her thick skinned exterior, Armin still recalled that night at graduation. Eva always gave off this 'Don't mess with me' aura and everyone listened to it. Even if they didn't at first, they would eventually. Mina was the first to talk about Eva on the first night, commenting on her cold personality.

People labeled Eva as cold, even callous to her fellow cadets. Her insistence about being alone definitely supported that reputation. Even when their training focused on teamwork, Eva maintained that abrasive persona. She still succeeded in teamwork, but not for the same reason most cadets were. Armin blinked, realizing that her reputation was entirely unfounded. Armin wasn't seeing someone who had no regard for others, that hated everyone around them. He was seeing someone who cared more than they could admit; more than they could handle.

Shadis stood on a large branch, criticizing everything they did as per usual. As a cadet hit the ground and rubbed their head, Shadis instantly focused on him. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Cadet?! This exercise is about teamwork, not an exercise in carrying Cadet Yaro's ass because he can't follow basic instructions!" The Cadet stood up, flinching from Shadis' incredible glare. "Are you deaf?! Get back to your squad!"

Armin saw the Cadet fly off back into the sky, weaving between the giant trees. He was a bit worried for the other Cadet, but there wasn't anything anyone could do if someone got on Shadis' bad side. Usually that ended up in both cadets getting in trouble.

Pushing through it, Armin raced ahead with his own assigned squad. With him was Marco, Thomas, Ruth, and their assigned squad leader Eva Faust.

It was evident from the moment they started Eva was on her own course, in her own league. She was stronger and faster than the rest of her team. This was the first coordination training that had Eva as leader, it was the test to put their strengths and weaknesses in front of Shadis. They all knew Eva already had extensive experience with ODM gear and could use it more effectively than the cadets on her team.

The first issue with their squad; her team struggled to keep up with her and she disregarded them.

The second issue; Eva did not delegate to her subordinates.

Thirdly; no one dared speak up against her, regardless of whether or not it was in their best interests.

Shadis marked the failure of Eva's team almost immediately. He wasn't unreasonable, he gave them a chance to pick it up. When there was no signs of the group improving, their marks began falling quickly. Each small infraction was a glaring issue to a squad. The weakest link here wasn't Armin's lack of strength or Ruth's inability to cut deep enough into a dummy titan... It was Eva herself.

The moment any of them began to fail, Eva pushed herself to maintain course. She would handle the dummy titan, she would keep the group together, she would do everything for them. Not once ordering them to do something for themselves.

It made everything harder when no one could speak up. Eva had a reputation; one no one wanted to tempt fate with. She was cold, uncaring... she never spent more than a minute with another cadet. Everyone believed she hated them, that she thought less of them. Or that she was just some asshole they would be stuck with until graduation. In any case, Eva was no ones friend.

Unfortunately, Armin was the cadet weakest physically on the team. He had to push himself much harder to keep up, even harder to attack the dummy titans before the other squads got there.

If their squad came in last they would all be punished. With Eva at the helm, this seemed highly likely.

Armin struggled so hard. Sweat poured from him, his hands shaking under the stress; he couldn't keep this up. As Shadis expected, the first cadet to fall.

The moment Armin lost grip on his blade he knew he was done for. They were too high up and he lost one of the ODM triggers. He was far too weak to use one cable to bring himself down. He had lost his strength entirely, his body aching and his hands numb. There wasn't anything he could do but fall.

Eva's eyes were sharp, she saw everything her team did the second they did it. Her awareness was one of her greatest strengths; her reaction speed was incredible. As Armin began to fall she was already turning around.

The squad was surprised to see her maneuver so quickly. She blew right between them, nosediving towards Armin as fast as she could. They realized what she was doing the moment they spotted Armin.

She hit him, her arm wrapping around him and, in the blink of an eye, they were back up in the air. Eva used their speed and angle to launch them onto a nearby branch surrounded by leaves and other branches. It was hard to see, even Shadis couldn't make out where they were anymore.

Eva landed on her back, Armin still in her arms, as the two hit the branch she protected him with her own body. The branch hit her back, her head whipping back and cracking on the tree branch. The force of the hit dazed Eva, her arms releasing Armin as she was momentarily incapacitated. He was breathing hard, surprised by the catch. His squad came through for him and he was thankful for it.

As he calmed his breathing and looked at the limp arm around him, he realized that the cadet that picked him out of the air wasn't moving. Alarmed, he pushed himself up, the arm dropping off him. "Eva." He was surprised to see their squad leader be the one to grab him.

He shook her shoulder, watching her eyes flicker as she regained herself. It took a moment before she sat up with Armin's help. "Armin... Are you alright?" She raised a hand to her head, wincing as her eyes turn to focus on him.

"Y-yeah..." His voice quiet. She sighed, finally shaking off the dizziness. She stood up, brushing off the dirt and broken pieces of bark off her clothes. "Eva-" He rose with her, watching as she studied their surroundings. She wasn't entirely certain where she had dropped them, but she knew they had fallen even further behind than they already were.

"We should get back." Her boots scratched the bark, the wood snapping under her weight. Armin followed her hesitantly; he needed to say something. It was hard for him to act first, to act out; he wasn't that kind of person. Eva scared everyone and Armin was one of the people most scared of her... Really, he was scared of most things.

As she checked her gear to ensure that she could bring them back safely, Armin let the courage he needed build up like boiling water. Until eventually, just before Eva was prepared to leave, he spoke out against her. "Eva, you're a bad leader!"

Shocked at himself Armin froze on the spot. Eva's eyes hidden by her blonde hair, hiding her reaction to Armin's outburst. She hadn't moved an inch, she just stood there with her blades in hand looking over the edge of the branch.

Armin swallowed hard, tense with fear. He had no idea what Eva's wrath looked like but he was certain it was coming. No one had ever antagonized Eva intentionally, no one had ever spoken negatively towards her. They didn't know what would happen, what Eva could make happen. She was this unknown entity in the 104th cadets. She didn't speak to anyone unless forced to, she didn't interact during dinner. Eva stayed alone, she stayed quiet, and the few times someone did bump into her... the intensity of her glare was enough to get them running.

She was scary and Armin didn't know what he had just done. He knew he wanted to be a good soldier, someone honest and trustworthy. He wanted to fight with his friends even though he didn't have the physical strength to do so.

Yet, he had the bravery to confront someone that scared the rest of the 104th cadets.

Heavy footfalls told him she had approached him swiftly, the leather boots stopping just in front of him. Taking a deep breath, he looked up to see Eva's stoic expression. He didn't know what to say and if he could say it at all. Fortunately, Eva did.

"You do it." She spoke pointedly to him, her tone sharp.

Was it a threat? Was she trying to test if he could do any better? Armin gasped, being given the lead wasn't part of the exercise. He was so scared of failing, so scared he wasn't capable like the others...

Eva's hand gripped his shoulder, bringing him back to reality. "You're right. I'm no leader. I don't want it. You take it."

It wasn't intimidation, it was honesty. Armin was reluctantly relieved to see she wasn't daring him to try just to see him fail, but instead urging him to take it from her because she had failed.

As they returned to the group, Armin held the reins. He gave directions, though he was cautious and insecure, he did his best. The squad saw improvements immediately, Shadis noted.

Eva was a strong weapon for the squad, able to overpower the rest of the cadets. As a leader she had no direction, no strategy to make her team effective. However, she followed orders perfectly. She never failed a single delegated task or let a cadet on her team fall behind. With Armin's natural intelligence and Eva's strength, the squad quickly blazed a trail back to the top.

Armin offered her an appreciative smile. "We care about you too, Eva." He could read her body language easily. She didn't have time to hide it, she had been caught completely off guard. She became tense and her eyes narrowed on him. It wasn't aggressive like so many other cadets had believed; Armin knew that was wrong now. She wasn't giving him a warning to stop, she was just surprised. "Please, take care of yourself. Don't push yourself too hard."

This was the first time Armin saw Eva at a loss for words, not because she didn't want to speak, but because she didn't know what to say.

He didn't know what made such a simple statement shake someone to their core like that, he was just glad he got to say it. It took three years to finally gain an understanding of his fellow cadet. Three years to know that nothing they did ever actually angered her... she was just so well guarded she didn't let anyone close. Armin wondered if he was the only cadet do have done this.

The world began to fade back in, the titans below her chomping and reaching out desperately. They still couldn't reach them, but they should've seen Eren's team send a signal by now.

Eva didn't have the chance to respond before Armin began to return to the top of the Wall. Looking back to the titans below and towards Armin, she chose to follow him. It was a strange partnership she was developing with him... She didn't want to call him a friend, she didn't think she deserved that right. Still, she felt good knowing he seemed to consider her a friend.

Back on top of the Wall, she saw the Garrison soldiers and back up cadets all staring over the city. Armin's eyes following their gaze, spotting in the distance a single red flare. It told them so much without any detail.

Something had gone wrong with the mission. Immediately, Armin sprinted off down the Wall, no doubt to rejoin with his friends and find out what was happening. Eva wanted this mission to succeed, she wanted Trost to survive the attack that destroyed Shiganshina and Wall Maria's lands. They needed to win a fight, they had nothing left to hold onto.

The Garrison Commander was right. If Wall Rose falls, than all the people in every surviving city would fall into ruin. There simply wasn't enough food to go around, not enough space for people to live. Rioting would dissolve the government within months. It would end the people inside these Walls.

She ran behind Armin, unable to move as fast as she could. He would be able to outrun her quickly, but she knew where he was going and she would find him there. With Eren and Mikasa.


End file.
